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THE  NATIONS  AT  WAR 


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THE    NATIONS 
AT  WAR 


BY 

WILLIS  J.  ABBOT 

AUTHOR  OF 

"  PANAMA  AND  THE  CANAL,"  "THE  STORY  OF 

OUR  NAVY,"  "  THE  STORY  OF  OUR  ARMY" 


WITH  NUMEROUS  ILLUSTRATIONS  FROM  DRAWINGS 
BY  THE  FOREMOST  WAR  ARTISTS  AND  PHOTOGRAPHS 
TAKEN  IN  THE  FIELD  BY  EXPERTS  OF  EVERY  NATION 


THE  1917  EDITION 


LESLIE-JUDGE  CO. 

PUBLISH KRS         NEW  YORK 


Copyright,  igiy, 
DOUBLEDAY,  PaGE  &  CoMTANY 

Jit  Riglits  Reserved 


INTRODUCTION 

FOR  YEARS  wise  men  had  said  that  there  could  be  no  general  European 
war.  Despite  the  menace  of  rival  armaments  they  thought  that  the  finan- 
cial ties  which  bound  all  nations  together  were  stronger  than  the  polit- 
ical differences  which  tended  to  bring  them  mto  conflict.  The  tremendous 
power  of  international  capital  and  credit  exerted  in  every  land  and  oper- 
ating as  a  unit  would  certainly  check  any  wasteful  war.  The  bankers 
controlling  the  money  and  credit  of  the  world  would  suppress  the  war-like 
ambitions  of  the  crowned  heads  by  locking  up  their  strong-boxes. 

So  the  wise  men  thought.  Rut  the  event  showed  the  bankers  bowing  low 
to  the  will  of  Kaiser,  King,  Emperor,  and  President.  Not  only  did  they  lend 
more  than  twenty  billions  to  the  belligerents  in  the  first  two  years  of  the  war, 
but  stood  ready  to  lend  more  and  more — for  a  price. 

The  world  thought  public  opinion  would  check  the  war  at  the  outset. 
Nobody  wanted  war — except  those  in  high  place  who  alone  had  the  power  to 
make  or  to  avert  it.  But  before  public  opinion  could  be  expressed  the  invad- 
ing columns  were  on  the  march,  the  guns  were  thundering  and  the  heavy  hand 
of  military  authority  stilled  any  sound  of  public  protest. 

Men  thought  there  would  be  no  war  because  International  Socialism  would 
reduce  the  belligerent  governments  to  impotence.  For  years  the  world  had 
been  told  that  the  cause  of  labor  was  international,  that  the  workingman's 
struggle  against  capitalism  was  the  same  in  France  as  in  Germany,  in  Italy 
as  in  Austria.  With  this  greater  warfare  in  progress,  involving  the  well-being 
of  the  workingmen  of  all  the  world,  no  working  man  would  be  deluded  into 
taking  up  arms  against  his  fellows  who  happened  to  speak  a  different  tongue 
or  render  fealty  to  a  foreign  state. 

But  at  the  test  the  internationalism  of  labor  vanished  as  had  the  inter- 
nationalism of  capital. 

A  long  war  was  impossible,  we  were  told,  because  the  greater  destructive- 
ness  of  modern  weapons  would  make  it  impossible  for  human  beings  to  sus- 
tain the  shock  of  conflict.  Every  inventor  of  a  new  and  peculiarly  effective 
device  for  wholesale  murder,  for  long  time  past,  had  been  assuring  the  world 
that  his  first  thought  in  inventing  it  had  been  to  make  war  so  horrible,  so 
ruinous,  that  it  would  be  abandoned  in  horror. 

War,  thereupon,  responded  to  this  theory  by  stimulating  the  invention 
of,  and  eagerh'  using  asphyxiating  gas,  lujuid  fire,  lachrymal  bombs,  armored 
tractors  that  crushed  the  wounded  in  their  path  while  mowing  down  platoons 
of  men  with  their  perfectly  protected  machine  guns.  Aircraft  were  per- 
fected— mainl\     that    they    might    rain    bombs    upon    inoffensive    civilians; 

2026712 


INTRODUCTION 

hospitals  and  schools  being  favorite  targets.  The  submarine  was  de- 
veloped to  a  point  that  outdid  the  imagination  of  Jules  Verne  and  was 
employed  largely  to  sink  helpless  merchantmen,  often  with  utter  disregard 
for  the  lives  of  their  passengers  whether  belligerent  or  neutral. 

One  by  one  the  forces  which  the  world  had  relied  upon  to  avert  the  calamity 
of  a  general  war  were  swept  away.  The  ties  of  finance,  of  commerce,  of 
mutual  interest,  of  common  humanity,  even  of  a  common  religion  were  broken. 
One  War  Lord,  most  vociferous  of  all  in  the  claim  that  God  was  especially 
enlisted  under  his  eagles,  did  not  scruple  to  ally  his  Christian  nation  with  the 
Turk,  and  exerted  every  influence  to  stir  up  all  Islam  to  waging  a  Holy  War 
on  the  Christian  peoples  of  the  world. 

The  lessons  of  this  war  should  be  political,  not  military.  The  world  should 
learn  not  how  to  make  perfect  the  art  of  devastating  countries  and  slaughtering 
enemies  but  how  to  prevent  the  need,  or  the  excuse  for  either. 

Decades  will  be  required  even  to  partially  obliterate  the  scars  of  conflict 
from  ravaged  Belgium,  France,  and  Poland.  Centuries  will  not  lift  from  the 
shoulders  of  the  people  the  burden  of  taxation  this  frenzied  outbreak  has  laid 
upon  them.  But  the  scars  might  be  made  honorable  memorials  of  a  march 
upward  to  a  higher  international  ideal,  the  debt  be  gloried  m  as  a  burden 
incurred  in  a  struggle  for  the  ultimate  good  of  the  human  race,  if  out  of  this 
war  could  come  an  eff^ective  movement  to  end  all  future  wars. 

Only  by  a  league  of  all  civilized  nations  can  such  an  end  be  attained.  With- 
out the  participation  of  the  United  States  such  an  association  would  be  in- 
complete and  impotent.  But,  it  is  urged,  the  entrance  of  the  United  States 
upon  such  an  alliance  would  be  to  abandon  the  historic  policy  of  the  nation, 
thus  first  enunciated  by  George  Washington:  'Tt  is  our  policy  to  steer  clear 
of  permanent  alliances  with  any  portion  of  the  foreign  world." 

But  the  world  has  changed  since  Washington's  day.  The  old  isolation  of 
the  United  States  is  ended.  Oceans  have  become  highways  instead  of  bar- 
riers. The  interests  of  all  nations  are  inextricably  interwoven.  While  a  few  of 
our  people  have  profited  bv  supplving  food  and  munitions  to  the  allies,  the 
great  mass  has  sufl^ered  by  the  enormous  increase  in  the  cost  of  living  due  to 
the  war.  Our  interest  in  a  long  and  enduring  peace  to  come  is  a  very  real  and 
positive  one. 

In  the  remaining  months  of  the  war — and  may  they  be  few! — the  thoughts 
of  the  American  people  should  be  concentrated  upon  the  best  method  of 
preventing  any  recurrence  in  future  time  of  so  calamitous  a  conflict.  Fhey 
must  grapple  with  new  conditions  in  a  new  way.  If  concerted  and  permanent 
action  on  the  part  of  all,  or  a  considerable  group  of  nations,  promises  such  a 
result  America  must  not,  by  too  great  loyalty  to  an  outworn  creed,  be  lack- 
ing to  it.  Of  all  nations  of  the  world  we  are  not  the  one  to  "attempt  the 
future's  portal  with  the  past's  blood  rusted  key." 

Willis  J.  Abbot. 

New  York,  Oct.,  1916. 


THE  NATIONS  AT  WAP. 


1  THE  NATIONS  1 
1       Al  WAR.       1 

CHAPTER     I 


ASSASSINATION    OF    ARCHDUKE    FERDINAND DIPLOMACY   PRECEDING 

THE    WAR POSITION    AND    RELATIVE     STRENGTH     OF    THE     POWERS 


N  JULY,  1914,  the  tur- 
bulent waters  of  the 
English  Channel  pre- 
sented a  most  impres- 
sive spectacle.  All 
the  way  from  the 
Needles  to  the  Hook 
of  Holland  the  estu- 
arv  was  crowded  with 
ships  of  war  all  flying 
the  white  ensign  of 
Great  Britain.  At 
one  point  a  line  of 
destroyers  was  drawn 
up,  at  a  distance  of 
perhaps  a  hundred 
yards  apart,  e.xtend- 
ing  across  the  straits 
from  England  to 
France.  I  heir  noses 
facing  the  rushing 
tide,  their  screws  were  kept  turning  just 
sufficiently  to  maintain  their  position  un- 
changed. A  monster  surveyor's  tape,  if 
drawn  across  the  tossing  waters,  would 
have  touched  the  stem  of  each  ship,  so  ac- 
curately were  they  aligned.  Squadrons 
of  super-dreadnoughts,  fleets  of  battle 
cruisers,  covies  of  submarines  dashing  about 
with  decks  awash  were  to  be  seen  on  every 
side  from  the  deck  of  the  Holland-American 
liner  on  which  was  the  writer  bound  to  Rot- 
terdam. The  holiday  crowd  that  thronged 
the  decks  of  that  liner  looked  on  the  thrilling 
exhibition  of  Great  Britain's  sea  power  as  a 


mere  playtime  pageant.  They  were  told 
that  it  was  the  season  of  the  King's  birth- 
day and  that  Winston  Churchill,  First  Lord 
of  the  Admiralty,  had  ordered  the  mobiliza- 
tion of  the  home  fleet  to  lend  eclat  to  the 
celebration.  Content  with  that  the  voy- 
agers, most  of  whom  were  Americans  little 
used  to  wars  and  rumors  of  wars,  went  about 
their  pleasure  trips  little  dreaming  that  they 
were  steaming  into  the  "ortex  of  the  bloodi- 
est war  the  world  had  ever  known. 

For  as  a  matter  of  fact  the  review  of  the 
British  fleet  was  far  from  being  a  mere  fes- 
tivity. It  was  one  card  in  a  desperate  dip- 
lomatic game  which  all  Europe  had  been  play- 
ing for  nearly  a  month.  It  was  intended  to 
recall  vividly  to  the  minds  of  foreign  chan- 
celleries the  overpowering  measure  of  Great 
Britain's  supremacy  upon  the  sea,  and  to 
impress  them  with  the  mighty  force  that 
would  be  unloosed  should  they  rush  into  war 
heedless  of  Britain's  attitude.  But  the  warn- 
ing unhappily  was  without  eff^ect. 

War  was  in  the  air.  Ever  since  the  Arch- 
duke Francis  Ferdinand,  heir  to  the  Imperial 
Crown  of  Austria-Hungary  had  been  shot 
dead  on  the  28th  of  the  preceding  June  at 
Sarajevo,  Bosnia,  hell-broth  had  been  brew- 
ing in  the  cauldron  of  the  Balkans.  The 
assassination,  Austria-Hungary's  offended 
sovereignty,  were  but  pretexts  for  the  war 
which  the  ruling  powers  of  Germany  were 
determined  to  force. 

Briefly  summarized  these  rival  ambitions 
were  as  follows: 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


C       T 

N  ICCLAhoT 


The  Germans  and  Slavs  whose  racial  antipathies  and  conflicting  territorial  and  commercial 
ambitions  were  largoly  responsible  for  the  war.  It  will  be  noticed  that  the  Slavic  peoples 
far  overlap  the  political  boundaries  even  in  Eastern  Germany 


The  Archduke  Francis  Ferdinand,  heir  apparent  to  the 
throne  of  Austria-Hungary,  whose  murder  was  the  starting- 
point  of  the  war 


Under  rlie  masterful 
rule  of  William  II  the 
governing  class  in  Ger- 
nian\-  had  come  to  as- 
pire to  dominance  over 
all  of  centra!  Europe. 
They  aimed  at  an  ex- 
tension of  the  German 
Empire  proper  to  the 
English  Channel,  ab- 
sorbmg  by  steps  more 
or  less  gradual  Bel- 
gium, Holland,  and 
Denmark.  With  this 
outlet  to  the  sea  thev 
determined  to  chal- 
lenge Great  Britain's 
maritime  supremacy 
both  by  the  creation 
of  a  naval  fleet  that 
would  equal  that  of  the 
British  and  by  building 
up  a  merchant  marine 
that  might  challenge 
the  primacy  of  British 
merchant  shipping.  To 
the  southward,  utiliz- 
ing the  close  alliance  of 
the  houses  of  Hohenzol- 
lern  and  the  Austrian  rulinghouseof  Hapsburg, 
they  planned  to  extend  German  influence  to  the 
Mediterranean  by  the  gradual  absorption  of 
the  western  Balkan  states  and  Turkey.  This 
plan  of  empire  contemplated  immediately  this 
e.xtension  of  [the  empire  of  Austria-Hungary 
and  its  domination  by  the  methods  of  German 
diplomacy.  But  that  the  far-seeing  eye  and 
active  imagination  of  William  II  unquestion- 
ably looked  forward  to  the  time  when  the 
diminishing  house  ot  Hapsburg  should  finally 
disappear,  and  the  southern  half  of  this  Teu- 
tonic alliance  should  become  wholly  German, 
indeed  Prussian,  in  its  government,  is  un- 
doubted. 

Naturally  this  plan  of  expansion,  worthy  of 
Erederick  the  Great  or  of  Napoleon,  instantly 
aroused  the  suspicion  and  antagonism  of 
Great  Britain,  Russia,  and  Erance.  Eor 
years,  therefore,  indeed  ever  since  the  end  of 
the  Eranco-Prussian  war  of  1 870-1,  these 
powers  had  been  opposing  the  Germanic 
pretensions  by  every  device  of  diplomacy,  and 
had  steadily  prepared  themselves  for  this  con- 
flict by  building  up  those  prodigious  arma- 
ments afloat  and  ashore  which  had  made 
Europe  an  armed  camp. 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


England,  wliich  was 
in  fact  last  to  enter 
upon  this  conflict,  was 
the  one  most  gravely 
menaced  by  the  Ger- 
man program.  For 
that  empire  with  its 
nucleus  and  governing 
centre  in  the  British 
Isles  is  scattered  over 
the  Four  quarters  ot  the 
globe.  It  is  dependent 
for  its  coherence,  even 
for  its  very  life,  upon 
its  absolute  control  of 
the  sea.  Thepeopleof 
England  and  Scotland 
in  time  of  actual  war 
could  live  scarcely  a 
week  upon  the  food 
supplies  in  their  pos- 
session should  the  car- 
riage of  foodstuffs  from 
other  lands  to  their 
shores  be  interrupted 
by  a  hostile  fleet  su- 
perior  to   their   own. 


The  intricate  racial  distribution  in  the  Austro-Hiingarlan  monarchy 


Moreover,  their  rule 
in  India  and  in  Australasia  would  be  seriously 
menaced  by  the  presence  at  the  eastern  end  of 
the  .Mediterranean  of  so  militant  a  power  as 
Germany.  The  growing  evidence  of  the 
character  of  the  German  menace  had  been 
apparent  to  Great  Britain  for  two  decades  or 
more.  The  actual,  overt  act  which  com- 
pelled the  British  entrance  upon  the  war  was, 
however,  the  advance  of  the  Germans  through 
Belgium  to  a  threatening  position  on  the 
coast. 

France,  w-hich  at  the  date  of  this  writing 
has  suffered  more  than  any  nation  invoKed 
in  the  war,  save  little  Belgium,  had  less  in- 
terest in  the  conflict  than  any  of  the  Allies. 
True,  any  grow-th  in  power  of  her  implacable 
enemy  was  a  menace.  But  her  sentimental 
desire,  cherished  ever  since  1871,  tor  the 
recovery  of  her  lost  provinces  of  Alsace- 
Lorraine  was  obviously  dying  out.  Mainly 
lo\alty  to  her  alliance  with  Russia,  coupled 
with  a  dread  of  the  further  enhancement  of 
Cierman  power  on  the  Continent,  drew  her 
into  the  struggle  in  which  of  all  the  allied 
nations  she  won  the  brightest  laurels. 

More  than  any  other  the  Russians'  ambi- 
tions clashed  with  the  German  and  Austrian 
ad\ance  to  the  south.  With  her  northern 
ports  on  the  Baltic  and  Arctic  Ocean  locked 


by  ice  for  a  large  portion  of  the  year  and  her 
southern  borders  opening  only  on  the  Black 


mperor  Francis  Joseph,  whose  long  rule  over  the  dual  mon- 
archy was  a  welcome  one  to  his  people 


T  HE     N  A  T I  ()  N  S     A  T     W  A  R 


CQh?itTenll}iiUitt^ 

i: 


^^ 


TER)£ 


I 

Kclgiiim's   most   flourishing   business.     There   is   a   world   of 
pathos  in  the  sign,  "Mourning  Complete  in  12  Hours." 


1  rt-nch  nodps  K^pi.inl  to  cheering  crowds.      In  every  village  the  crowds  gathered  aruunil  the  railwa;. 
station  f^  cheer  and  applaud  the  men  who  were  on  their  way  to  die  for  "La  Belle  France" 


Sea  blocked  b>'  Turkish  cannon  at  the  Dar- 
danelles, this  mighty  empire  has  for  centuries 
been  striving  to  secure  an  outlet  to  na\igable 
waters  open  the  year  around.  It  sought  this 
path  to  the  Mediterranean  by  way  of  the 
Halkan  states.  1  he  Slavs  of  Servia,  Bos- 
nia, Roumania,  Bulgaria,  were  kin  b\-  blood 
and  allied  by  customs  to  the  Russian  people. 
Russian  ascendancy  in  their  politics  gave 
assurance  of  their  ultimate  complete  domina- 
tion by  some  future  Czar.  Could  they  jointlv 
throw  off  the  Turkish  yoke  and  expel  the 
Turks  from  Europe  the  Russian  way  to  the 
Mediterranean  would  be  clear.  In  igi2 
this  ambition  bade  fair  to  be  gratified. 
For  the  Balkan  states  declared  war  upon 
Turkey  and  won  a  swift  victory,  carrying 
their  armies  to  the  very  doors  of  Constanti- 
nople. At  this  juncture  the  Germanic  pow- 
ers intervened.  The  Turkish  armies  had 
been  trained  and  officered  by  Germans. 
English  influence  at  Constantinople,  which 
had  been  dominant  for  a  century,  had  been 
shattered  by  the  diplomats  of  the  Kaiser. 
At  the  critical  moment  Austria  backed  by 
German  power  intervened,  robbing  the  Bal- 
kan states  of  the  fruits  of  their  victory,  and 
particularly  denying  to  Servia  the  right  of 
access  to  the  Adriatic  Sea.  To  block  this 
route  the  Teutonic  powers  insisted  on  the 
creation    of   the    state    of   Albania    under    a 

German  prince. 
Thereupon  the 
Balkan  states  fell 
to  fighting  among 
themselves,  and 
the  greater  states 
of  Europe,  fore- 
seeing that  out  of 
this  situation 
would  grow  a 
general  war,  be- 
gan their  prepara- 
tions for  It. 

It  is  significant 
I  hat  immediately 
after  her  interfer- 
ence in  the  Bal- 
kans Germany 
passed  a  new 
linn  law  so  in- 
creasing her 
military  estab- 
lishment as  togive 
it     a     prepondei"- 


ft#1 


ance  ot  jo  per 


THE     NAIIONS     AT    WAR 


cent,  over  the  trained  forces  in  France. 
France  with  a  far  smaller  population  and 
all  available  men  already  under  arms  met 
this  by  increasing  her  term  of  military  ser- 
vice from  two  years  to  three.  Great  Bri- 
tain continued  to  place  her  reliance  soleK' 
on  her  fleet,  neglectinij  any  development  of 
her  army,  a  course  which  she  had  bitter  cause 
to  regret  in  the  early  years  of  the  great  war. 

It  was  therefore  the  resentment  of  Servia 
at  having  been  balked  of  the  fruit  of  its  vic- 
tories in  the  Balkan  war  that  caused  the  as- 
sassination which  brought  on  the  later  general 
conflict.  A  large  part  of  the  subjects  of  the 
empire  of  Austria-Hungary,  those  in  the 
southern  halt  bordering  on  Servia,  are  them- 
selves Slavs  eager  to  throw  off  the  Hapsburg 
yoke  and  sympathetic  with  the  aspirations 
of  their  Servian  neighbors.  The  house  of 
Hapsburg  had  become  concentrated  in  the 
persons  of  the  Emperor  Francis  Joseph,  al- 
ready approaching  the  senility  of  advanced 
years,  and  his  heir  the  Archduke  Ferdinand. 
All  Europe  had  long  believed  that  the  death 
of  the  old  Emperor  would  be  the  signal  for  a 
general  war.  The  Servian  plotters  conceived 
the  idea  that  if  the  only  apparent  successor 
to  the  Emperor  were  killed  this  war  would  be 
assured,  and  out  of  the  general  breakup  of 
states  they  might  pluck  their  own  independ- 
ence, unite  with  the  Slavs  of  Hungary, 
and  regain  their  outlet  to  the  Adriatic. 
Out  of  this  hope 
sprang  the  assas- 
sination of  the 
Archduke. 

Austria  incensed 
at  the  murder  of 
its  heir  apparent 
made  demands 
upon  Servia  for 
redress.  For  a 
month  these  de- 
ma  n  d  s  w  e  1  e 
pressed  greatly  to 
the  disquiet  of  the 
chancelleriesof  all 
Europe,  but  not 
so  openly,  nor  yet 
so  strenuously,  as 
tocause  public  ap- 
prehension ot  a 
menace  to  the 
general  peace  of 
Europe.  It  has 
cjeen  shown  since 


».  -  -,  ■»-       ■■:*•■  <  *, 
Better  than  being  captiirtil      \i""ii  :   .         ! 'i  L-iiii  mm,||,  rs 
got  across  the  border  into  Holland  when  Antwerp  was  evacu- 
ated, and  were  there  disarmed  by  the  Dutch  army  and  placed 
in  camps 


Enijlibh  infantry.      1  he  enthusiasm  that  is  transformed  into  yrmi  determination  under  tire 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


The  Teutonic    dream  t)f 


pan-Germanic  empire  with  outlets  upon  the  Baltic,    North,  and  Medi- 
terranean seas 


that  the  thirty  days  occupied  in  secret 
and  underground  diplomacy  was  also  utilized 
by  the  two  Teutonic  powers  to  make  hurried 
preparations  for  the  war  which  they  unques- 
tionably intended  to  force.  On  the  28th  of 
June  the  assassina- 
tion was  committed. 
On  the  23d  of  July 
the  government  at 
Vienna  sent  to  the 
government  at  Bel- 
grade an  ultnnatum 
of  a  sort  hitherto 
unknown  to  civilized 
diplomacy.  Itprac- 
ticallydcmanded  the 
surrender  of  Servian 
sovereignty  and  the 
installation  of  Aus- 
trian magistrates  m 
Servian  courts  to  tr\ 
and  condemn  Ser- 
vian subjects  and 
officers  at  the  plea- 
sure of  the  Austrian 
government.  Forty- 
eight  hours  only  was 

allowed      for     a     res-  tsntisn  reservists  arrivmg  at 


ponse  to  this  de- 
mand, and  al- 
though the 
Servian  govern- 
ment conceded 
nine-tenths  of  the 
points  at  issue, 
Austria,  backed 
by  Germany, 
swept  aside  all  the 
efforts  of  the 
other  powers  of 
Europe  to  inter- 
vene in  behalf  of 
peace  and  de- 
clared  war  upon 
Serviaon  the  27th 
of  July.  Russia 
thereupon,  hav- 
ing already  de- 
clared that  it 
would  not  permit 
war  to  be  made 
upon  Servia  on 
"  a  mere  pretext," 
declared  war  upon 
Austria. 

Thereafter 
every  effort  to  stay  the  spread  of  the  con- 
flagration was  in  vain.  At  every  point  Ger- 
man influence  blocked  negotiations  for 
peace.  Austria,  indeed  when  she  found  that 
Russia   could   not   be   kept    out  of  the  cc:.- 


.sLcuiL  tliLir  unilornis  and 


THE    XATTONS    AT    WAR 


flict,  expressed 
herself  as  willing 
to  take  up  nego- 
t  i  a  t  i  o  n  s  with 
Petrograd  al- 
though the  gun;; 
were  already  roar- 
ing along  the  Ser- 
vian border.  But 
this  chance  o  t 
peace  was  blocked 
by  Germany, 
which  presented 
on  the  very  next 
day  an  ultimatum 
to  Russia  and  to 
France.  Sir 
Edward  Grey,  the 
English  Foreign 
Secretary,tried 
until  the  last  mo- 
ment to  secure  an 
international  con- 
ference  for  the 
maintenance  of 
peace,  but  was 
blocked     by     the 

entranceof  the  German  forces  into  the  Duchy  England,  last  of  the  embattled  powers  to 

of  Luxemburg,  the  neutrality  of  which  had      go  into  the  fight,  might  possibly  have  been 
been  guaranteed  b\'  all  the  powers  of  Europe,      held  neutral  save  for  the  German  invasion  of 


Russia's  conflicting  dream  cf  empire,  including  the  Slav  and   Scandinavian  peoples 


Including  Germany  herself.  Afccr  this  it 
was  a  matter  of  hours  only  before  all  Europe 
v.r.s  at  war. 


German  officers  lunching  on  the  spoils  of  Liege 


Belgium.  That  state,  together  with  the 
Netherlands  to  the  north  of  it,  had  been 
created   and   maintained   as   "buffer"  states 

by  a  general  agree- 
ment of  European 
powers.  Its  neu- 
trality was  guaran- 
teed. So  far  as 
solemn  engage- 
ments on  the  part 
of  sovereign  powers 
could  secure  it  Bel- 
gium was  to  be  held 
free  from  all  danger 
of  invasion,  to  be 
kept  sheltered  from 
the  shock  of  war. 
To  this  agreement 
Prussia,  prior  to  the 
formation  of  the 
German  empire,  had 
been  a  party,  and  as 
the  ruling  member 
of  that  group  of 
states  was  still 
bound  by  it.      None 


lO 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


LV.ai   NidiuUb  ami  King  CJcurKC  \  .,  royal  rousins  witli  a  long-stanclini;  colonial  rivalry  and  divergent  political  beliefs, 

drawn  together  in  an  unexpected  alliance 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


II 


Motor  trucks  proved  invaluable  in  drawing  heavy  siege  guns  and  sup- 
plies more  rapidly  than  it  would  have  been  possible  with  horses 


the  less  the  advantage  of  rushing  upon  France 
througli  an  almost  powerless  state  and  attack- 
ing the  greater  nation  on  a  frontier  that  had 
been  left  unfortified  was  too  much  for  the  Ger- 
man sense  of  honor.  That  part  of  the  French 
frontier  which  faced  Germany  was  a  line  of 


powerful  fortresses.  Verdun,  Toul,  Epinal, 
and  Belfort  reared  sinister  fronts  in  the  face 
of  a  German  invader.  We  know  now  that 
the  superiority  of  the  German  artillery  at 
the  opening  of  the  war  would  have  enabled 
them  at  that  time  to  demolish  these  fortresses 


A  lixitiih  anununiti'.'U  ti.iiii  hjltLj  un  the  lujj  tui  iuncii 


• 


m 


TKl-  celebration  in  Berlin  whun  captured  Russian,  Htl^ian,  and  Krtncli  [juns  wctt  brWB^'i  tlirujyh  tht  Urjndtnburt  Liatc  down  Unitr  Dun  Lindtn  to  tin.  Iinpi-njl  RLiidti 


^ 


o 


FOLDOUT  BLANK 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


William  II  of  Germany,  who  forged  that  nation's  magnificent  fighting  machine  and  directed  the  campaign  which  astonished 

the  world  by  its  power  and  swift  movement 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


IS 


as  easily  as  they  did 
those  at  Liege  and  at 
Namur.  But  at  the 
moment  the  Germans, 
with  cynical  indiffer- 
ence to  their  treaty  ob- 
ligations, chose  what 
they  thought  was  the 
easier  way.  It  proved 
in  the  end  to  be  the 
harder  way.  For  ex- 
cept for  the  invasion 
of  Belgium  it  is  pos- 
sible, even  probable, 
that  England  might 
not  have  entered  the 
war.  "You  surely 
would  not  fight  for  a 
mere  scrap  of  paper?" 
said  the  German  Am- 
bassador to  Sir  Edward 
Grey,  but  England  did 
fight  and  for  that  con- 
crete reason,  though  it 


RiLiils  111  Bclmuni  filled  uith  homeless  unnJerers 


Going  to  war  in  mutor  busses.     When  the  order  for  mobilization  wa.s  issued  the  French  governnunt  seized  all  the  automobiles, 
horses  and  motor  busses  it  could  lay  its  hands  on,  to  assist  in  the  ttansport  of  troops 


i6 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


t  (iss.icks.  ri  si  rcTLiI  aiiil  ti  .mil  m  tla  f.isri.in  tlic.nn-  ut  uar  as  the  Uhlans  are  in  the  western  field 


is  entirely  probable  that  more  selfish  con- 
siderations, having  to  do  with  German  ambi- 
tions for  high  standing  on  the  sea  and  for  a 
foothold  on  the  North  Sea  and  Mediter- 
ranean shores  were  also  influential  factors 
in  forming  the  British  conclusions. 

So  in  a  few  days  Austria  had  de- 
clared war  upon  Servia,  Russia  upon 
Austria,  Germany  upon  Russia 
and  France,  France  upon  Ger-       ^ 
many  and  Austria,  and  England    / 
upon  the  two  Teutonic  powers. 
The     whole     structure     of 
European  go\ernment  went  , 


down  like  a  ro\v  of  card  houses  and  uito  the 
general  turmoil  far-o(f  Japan,  England's 
ally  in  Asiatic  waters,  cast  her  defiance  of 
German  power,  and  the  guns  were  roaring 
on  the  borders  of  the  German  colony  of  Kiao- 
chau,  almost  as  soon  as  they  were  on  the 
borders  of  Belgium. 

Almost  had  the  German  Em- 
peror paralleled  in  this  twen- 
tieth   century    the    situation 
crea  ted  nearly  two 
1^,  hundred    years  earlier 

|i'  b\- his  famous  pro- 


srenitor 


lerict 


The  French  aeroplane  mi  its  aiitoniolnlc  conveyance.      Ul  all  the  warring  nations,  trance  was  best  supplied  with  aerial  craft 


THE     NATIONS     AT    WAR 


17 


9 

Kl^itf^V    Vr/-^ 

A    JSyV              J 

^^ffv^S^^htfSftJ 

jEjffii^^ 

"~     « 

kaj^^^^^^^I 

iH 

IP^ 

■JS||B 

■; 

i 

^■i 

;.-> 

iJUJ 

..  ■-. 

the  Great  and  described  by  Macaulay  in  this 
famous  passage: 

"On  the  head  of  Frederic  is  all  the  blood 
which  was  shed  in  a  war  raged  during  many 
years  and  in  every  quarter  of  the  globe — 
the  blood  of  the  column  of  Fontenoy,  the 
blood  of  the  mountaineers  who  were  slaught- 


iii  ,       '     ,   11  It-ssons  learned  in  the  South  African  W.n 

ered  at  Culloden.  The  evils  produced  by 
his  wickedness  were  felt  in  lands  where  the 
name  of  Prussia  was  unknown;  and,  in  order 
that  he  might  rob  a  neighbor  whom  he  had 
promised  to  defend,  black  men  fought  on  the 
coast  of  Coromandel,  and  red  men  scalped  each 
other  by  the  Great  Lakes  of  North  America." 


^S9?imm^^miimm»^if^J:^ii^i?i^'^^^ms^:sssm:H^!^a:t&:Kr--. 


French  troops  Lk  tort  Altkirch.      I'      I  i        li  invasion  of  (itrman  territory  at  the  opening  of  the  war  was  not  successful,  but  it 
roused  great  entliusiasni  in  France.     Ahkirch,  in  Alsace,  was  one  of  the  first  towns  taken 


i8 


^^ 


THE     NATIONS     AT    WAR 


-.^IK 


Boy  scouts  at  work.     'I 


1  inirh  Hi'V  Scouts  were  useful  in  a  the 
the  early  ihiys  of  the  war 


It  is  significant  of  the  defer- 
ence which  belhgerent  govern- 
ments pay  to  the  wide-spread 
sentiment  for  peace,  and   par- 
ticularly  to   public   opinion   in 
neutral  lands,  that  for  months 
after  the  outbreak  of  the  war 
each  country  engaged  in  it  was 
eagerly  protesting  that  the  con- 
flict  had   been  forced   upon   it 
and  that  it  could  not  be  charged 
with  being  the  aggressor.      The 
presses    of    all     Europe    were 
busied    with    putting    out 
"White  Books,"  "Red  Books," 
"Orange     Books,"    and    other 
diplomatic    documents    named 
by    the    public    in    accordance 
with  the  colors  of  their  covers 
and   each   intended   to  demon- 
strate the  innocence  of  the  na- 
tion issuing  it.     Germany,  upon 
which     neutral    condemnation 
rested    most    heavily,    because 
the    marvelous    swiftness    with 
which  it  struck  suggested  per- 
fect preparation  and  early  de- 
termination for  war,  was   par- 
ticularly insistent  that  the  war 
had   been   forced    upon   it   and 
was  fought  in  self-defense  only. 
But  this  position  the  German 
diplomats  were   never  able   to 
establish  to  the  satisfaction  of 
neutral  public  opinion.      Later 
developments,    however,   made 
it   appear    that    Germany    had 
not  expected   up  to    the    very 
last     moment     that     England 
would  fight.     In  the  last  inter- 


Uelgidn  cdvaliy  bnnmng  straw  to  bleep  on  in  the  trcnchi;^ 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


19 


view  between  the  German  Am- 
bassador and  Sir  Edward  Grey, 
the  British  Minister  of  Foreign 
Affairs,  tlie  former  was  told  that 
if  Belgian  territory  was  \iolated 
England  might  enter  the  war. 
It  seems  possible  that  had  the 
British  statesman  stated  bluntly 
that  in  such  event  England 
WOULD  enter  the  war  Germany 
might  have  receded  from  her 
truculent  position  and  the  fright- 
ful conflict  would  have  been 
averted.  For  the  final  declara- 
tion of  war  was  recei\ed  by  the 
German  government  with  every 
indication  that  it  was  wholly 
unexpected. 

It  seemed  at  the  outset  that 
the  odds  were  overwhelmingly 
against  the  Teutonic  allies.  The 
mere  statement  of  the  problem 
looks  wholl\'  one-sided.  Agamst 
Germany  and  Austria-Hungary, 
at  the  outset,  were  arrayed 
Russia,  France,  Great  Britain, 
Belgium.  Japan,  and  Servia. 
Against  a  population  of 
114,900,000  were  arrayed  na- 
tions numbering  322,500,000. 
In  the  estimate  of  the  latter  are 
not  included  the  teeming  mil- 
lions of  British  India  though 
they  furnished  the  allied  forces 
with  tens  of  thousands  of  gal- 
lant soldiers. 

Against  the  German  and 
Austrian  navy  was  pitted  the 
British  navy,  vastly  superior  to 
both  combined,  as  well    as   the 


England  collects  horses.     The  great  necessity  for  horses  for  the  British  Army 

resulted  in  the  war  department  taking  them  wherever  found.     They  were, 

of  course,  paid  for,  but  the  owners  had  no  option  about  selling 


Belgian  infantry  defending  , 


-^i  Lu^. 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


It 


The  little  soldier  at  salute 

floating    forces    of    Russia, 
!■  ranee,  and  Japan,  which  com- 
^"v-.  bined     might    be    fairly    held 

superior  to  those  of  Germany. 
in  military  force  the  disparity  between  the 
two  groups  of  belligerents  was  at  the  outset 
less  apparent.  Germany  was  admittedly 
the  foremost  military  nation  of  the  world. 
Her  equipment  for  war  was  unequalled  by 
any  nation  or  group  of  nations.  Every 
endeavor  of  an  inventive  and  an  efficient 
people  had  been  bent  to  the  task  of  making 
the  German  army  the  most  magnificent 
fighting  machine  known  to  history.  In 
the  newer  devices  of  Zeppelins,  aeroplanes, 
military   motors,  new   and   prodigious   t\-pes 


of  field  artil- 
ery,  the  Ger- 
man superior- 
ity was  incalcu- 
lable. 

In  the  mere 
number  of 
soldiers  trained 
to  arms  the  two 
belligerentbod- 
les  were  nearly 
matched.  The 
c  o  m  p  a|r  a  t  i  V  e 
figures  as  they 
stood  at  the  opening  of  the  war  may  be 
in  round  numbers  as  follows: 


The  hour  of  farewell.       British  soldier 
saying  good-bye  to  his  wite  and  child 


put 


Kini;  (iciT^i  ins|HAiinj;  .1  jioriiun  ni  the  linti:,h  expeditionary  force 


22 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


23 


THE    TEUTONIC    ALLIES 

Germany,  Standing  Army .      .      .  800,000 

War  footing        .      .      .  4,000,000 

Austria-Hungary,   Standing  Arm\'  472,000 

War   footing    .  1,360,000 

Maximum  war  strength  4,320,000 

ENTENTE    ALLIES 

Great  Britain,  Standing  Army  125,000 

First   Reserve  206,000 

Second    Reserve    .  463,000 

Total   framed    men        .       .  794,000 

I'rance,  Standing  Army     .      .      .  750,000 

First    Reserve        .       .       .  700,000 

Second   Reserve    .      .      .  700,000 

Total  trained   men       .      .  2,150,000 

Russia,   Standing  Army     .      .      .  1,073,000 

First  Reserve        .      .      .  1,838,500 

Second   Reserve    .      .      .  2,488,500 

Total  trained   men              .  5,400,000 


To  the  allied  force  should  be  added  the 
Servian  army  which  on  a  peace  footing 
numbered  160,000,  and  on  a  war  footing 
380,000.  As  a  result  of  the  almost  constant 
war  m  the  Balkans  these  troops  were  prac- 
tically all  veterans.  With  them,  too,  are  to 
be  counted  the  Belgian  army  with  a  peace 
strength  of  about  50,000  men  and  a  war 
strength  of  340,000.  The  Belgian  troops 
were  well  armed,  but  by  their  heroic  effort 
to  stop  the  invasion  of  their  neutral  country 
they  sacrificed  at  the  very  outset  practically 
the  whole  of  their  army  on  a  peace  footing 
to  the  overwhelming  strength  of  the  German 
invaders.  Furthermore,  the  swiftness  with 
which  the  Germans  overran  and  subdued 
the  greater  part  ot  Belgian  territory  made 
it  impossible  to  call  to  the  colors  all  of 
the  men  constituting  the  army  on  a  war  foot- 
ing. 

As  the  war  progressed,  and  as  the  result 
of  diplomatic  plots  and  counter  plots,  Tur- 
key and  Bulgaria,  both  nations  of  notable 
military   strength   w'ith    armies  well   trained 


A  pontoon  brijjjc  destroyed  by  British  shell  tire  while  (ieriiKin  I  hians  were  crossing 


24 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


under  German  officers  and  made  up  of  nat- 
ural fighters  of  notorious  ferocity,  cast  their 
lot    with    the    Teutonic    allies,    while    Italy, 
Roumania  and   Portugal  joined   forces   with 
the  entente  allies,  as  the  British,  French,  and 
Russian  forces  were  termed. 
In  the  case  of  Portugal   the 
declaration  of  war  upon  Ger- 
many was  purely  formal   as 
her  forces  took  no  part  in  the 
struggle  until  late  in  the  war. 

The   apparent   odds   against   the  Teutons 
were,    however,    more    apparent    than    real. 
They  had  at  the  beginning  the  incomparable 
advantage  of  having  their  forces  in  a  state 
of  complete   preparation    and   their   plan   of 
campaign  thoroughly  worked  out.     Ihe  effi 
ciency  of  their  military  strategy  was  enor 
mously    increased    by   the  fact    that    their 
armies   were  under   a   single   dominating 
mind,  for  leadership  was  early  conceded 
by  the  Austrians  to  the  German  mili- 
tary authority.     It  may  be  noted  here 
that    during  the   first  two  years  ot 
the  war   whenever  the   Austrians 
alone   were  left  to    combat  the 
Russian  advance  they 
were  beaten.      It   was 
only  when  German 
troops     were     hastily 
withdrawn    from    the 
western  theatre  of  war  and 
sent   to   the    Austrian   au 
that  the  progress  of  Rus 
sia  was  blocked.     This  Ger 
man  domination  of  all  the 
Teutonic  forces  was   obvi- 
ously  an   advantage    when 
contrasted  with  the  almost 
complete    independence    ot 
the    Russian    military    au- 
thority from   any   domina- 
tion by,  or  even  association 
with,  the  British  and  French 
allies. 

Geographical  conditions 
were  even  more  advanta- 
geous for  the  Teutons. 
Their  territory  was  con- 
tiguous, compact.  Where 
it  took  weeks  for  the   Bri-  , 

■   1  J    T,""  u   i  ^    ■    .-  liiirig      Iroin      the 

tish  and  French  to  get  into  ^^^^_,^,^.^       ^^ 

actual  physical  contact  with  ^,,^  ,^^.^  ^^^  ^^.^-^^^ 

their  allies  the  Russians,  the  „,,„    .^    pounds    a 

Germans      and      Austrians  strong  man  can  use  it 

were    in     actual    contact     at    like  an  ordinary  rifle 


all  times.    If  the  allied  line  was 
menaced  in  Flanders  it  was  a 
matter  of  utter  impossibil- 
ity to  bring  to  its  assistance 
any  reenforcement  from  the 
enormous  armies  of  Russia. 
Indeed  it  was  not  until 
near    the    end    of  the 
~^<      second  year   of  the  war 
that    Russian   troops 
figured    at    all     in    the 
struggle  in  western 
Europe. 

But  it  the  Germans  were 
menaced  by  Russian  troops 
in    eastern   Prussia   or  the  Austrians   facing 
disaster  in  Galicia,  troops    could    be    drawn 
from  the  German  lines  in  Belgium  or  France 
and  hurried  to  the  point  of  peril  bv  a  dav's 
travel  along  railroads  wholly  within  protected 
German    territory.     The   situation    was    not 
unlike  that  presented  in  our  own  Civil  War, 
during  its  earlier  years,  when  the  Confederates 
could    easily   rush    troops    from    Virginia   to 
1  ennessee  or  back  again  as  need  arose  with- 
out any  possible  interference  on  the  part  of 
the    Union    generals.     This   advantage  of   a 
shorter  line  and  interior  communications   is 
recognized   by  strategists   as   of  the  highest 
value  to  the  belligerent  enjoying  it. 

In  any  consideration  of  the  comparative 
strength  of  the  rival  belligerent  forces  the 
fact  of  Great  Britain's  enormous  reserve 
force  must  be  considered.  At  the  outset 
England  had  to  oppose  to  the  resistless  force 
of  the  German  armies  a  scant  i2:;,ooo  regular 
troops,  and  the  record  of  that  gallant  handful 
doomed  to  early  extinction  is  glorious  enough 
to  make  a  story  of  its  own.  But  by  the  end 
of  the  second  year  of  the  war  England  had 
put  into  the  field  more  than 4,500,000  men, 
though  the  greater  part  of  these  had  then  just 
become  available  for  service.  Delay  in 
ienlistment,  the  time  necessary  to  turn  raw 
recruits  into  skilled  soldiers,  the  herculean 
task  of  gathering  the  units  of  its  force  from 
Canada,  New  Zealand,  Australia,  and  In- 
dia, and  above  all  the  difficulty  of  securing 
arms  and  munitions,  which  British  factories 
were  utterly  inadequate  to  supply,  made  the 
British  entry  upon  actual  land  hostilities 
seem  to  be  both  grudging  and  dilatory.  It 
was  the  failure,  as  we  shall  see,  of  the  Germans 
to  press  their  first  d;ive  into  France  to  the 
point  of  actual  victory,  before  the  prodigious 
latent   strength    of  Great    Britain   could    be 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


25 


Sectional  Illuitration  of  the  Lewis  Gun. 


The  Lewis  Air-Cooled  Machine  Gun. 

1  he  "  Belf;ian  rattlesnake."      This  name  was  given  the  Lewis  gun  because  of  its  spiteful  whir  when  firing  at  high  speed 


broup;lit    into    action,    that    determined    the  Like  the  people  of  the  United  States  the 

final  outcome  of  the  war.  British  people  have  always  been  jealous  of  a 

The  difficulty  which  the  British  found  in  great  standing  army.     The  troops  they  had 

raising  and  equipping  an  army  adequate  to  at  the  outbreak  of  the  storm  in   1914  were 

meet  the  situation  forced  upon  them  should  be  only  enough   to   man   the   militar}-  posts   in 

most  instructive  to  the  people  of  the  United  their  widely  scattered  colonial  dependencies. 

States.     Like  our  own  government,  Great  Bri-  They  were  good  troops,  none  better.      In  the 

tarn  is  a  democracy.     It  has  the  forms  of  mon-  first  six  months  of  the  war  practically  every 

archy    but   is   in    some    respects  even    more  man  of  them  was  killed  or  otherwise  put  out 

democratic  than  the  United  States.     The  ulti-  of  action.     When  the   French  sprang  nobly 

mate  consent  of  the  people  is  necessary  to  any  to  arms,  a  united  nation  in  the  field.  Great 

Britain   could  send   as 


such  mill tarv  establish- 
ment as  the  crisis  of 
1914  demanded.  For 
centuries  the  English 
people  had  relied  upon 
their  navy  as  a  com- 
plete defence  against 
any  menace  from  with- 
out. This,  too,  has 
been  the  attitude  of 
the  people  of  the 
United  States  who  are 
accustomed  to  regard 
the  broad  oceans  that 
separate  us  from  any 
possible  enemy  as  ob- 
stacles to  possible  in- 
vasion. As  a  matter  of 
fact  to-day  the  ocean 
is  a  highway  across 
which  troops  can  be 
more  readilv  trans- 


IN  AcT><3N 


its  share  of  the  line 
which  blocked  the  Ger- 
man advance  only 
125,000  men.  The 
first  and  most  serious 
task  which  confronted 
rhe  government  was 
to  add  to  this  little 
fighting  force  an  army 
which  should  rank  with 
the  3, 50o,oooof  France 
and  the  more  than 
4,000,000  of  Germany. 
To  accomplish  this 
task  Lord  Kitchener, 
the  victor  of  Khar- 
toum, was  summoned 
from  retirement  to  be- 
come Minister  of  War. 
It  took  eight  months 
for    him   to   raise  and 


J     ,             J-                 ,  J  The    forts    at    Liege.     The    fortifications    at    Liege    were 

ported  than  they  could  pj^^^^j  (,y  the  Belgian  engineer  General  Brialmont.     One  ^quip  the  first  750,000 

across  one-hfth  thedlS-  „f  their  most  effective  features  was  the  disappearing  tur-  mt'T  which  the  English 

tance  ashore.  rets,  in  which  the  guns  were  mounted  Called     Kitchener's 


26 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


army,  and  the  Germans,  "Kitchener's  mob." 
In  a  way  it  was  a  mob,  for  its  component 
parts  were  drawn  from  all  the  widely  scat- 
tered outposts  of  British  powe"-.  Canada  m 
particular   was    map;niticer  >:   m   its   contribu- 


The  German  irmv  in  Belgium.     The  armed  hosts  of  the  Kaiser 
vest,  when  the  wheat  haj  been  cut  but  was 

tions  of  men  for  the  defence  ot  the  empire, 
and  among  the  troops  it  sent  was  an  "Ameri- 
can Legion  "  composed  of  citizens  of  the  United 
States  who  had  enlisted,  of  course,  without  the 
knowledgeorconsent  of  theirown  government. 
Australia  and  New  Zealand,  the  multitudinous 
tribes    of    India,    residents   of    the    British 


African  colonies  were  all  represented  in  this 
first  army  of  volunteers. 

But  even  that  army  was  inadequate  to  the 
need  of  the  nation.  As  the  other  nations 
had  given  all  their  citizens  to  the  defence  of 

the  common 
--'  cause  it  was 
asked  why  Great 
Britain  gave 
only  the  few  who 
were  willing  to 
volunteer.  A 
cry  for  conscrip- 
tion and  univer- 
sal service  was 
raised.  It  was 
opposed,  hon- 
esth  enough,  by 
laborunionswho 
in  every  country 
complain  that  it 
is  the  working- 
man  who  fights 
and  the  capital- 
ist who  reaps  all 
the  profit.  It 
also  incurred  the 
hostility  of  those 
who  dreaded  lest 
with  the  aban- 
donment of  the 
long-time  volun- 
teer system  Eng- 
land should  fall 
a  prey  to  the  mil- 
it  arism  which 
had  proved  such 
a  burden  to  con- 
tinental Europe. 
Lord  Derby 
made  a  magnifi- 
cent attempt  by 
systematic  re- 
cruiting en- 
deavors  to  meet 
the  needs  of  the 
situation,  but 
finally  theory 
had  to  give  way 
to  the  desperate  menace  of  the  situation  and 
a  qualified  system  of  conscription  was  put 
into  effect.  By  this  method  the  British  were 
able  to  put  into  the  field,  by  the  middle  of 
1916,  an  army  that  totaled  about  4,000,000. 

To  arm  and  equip  this  force  was  more 
than   the   manufacturing  facilities   of  Great 


poured  into  Belgium  during  the  har- 
still  in  the  fields 


THE    NATIONS 
thi 


AT 


WAR 

deh 


27 


Britain  were  equal  to.  Like  France  and  this  country  delayed  and  rifled,  and  our  ships 
Russia  the  British  found  it  necessary  to  buy  held  up  sometimes  for  weeks.  The  resent- 
huge  quantities  of  arms  and  munitions  in  the  ment  of  Germany  against  America  for  supply- 
United  States.  Their  orders  were  gladly  ac-  ing  her  enemies  with  arms  came  in  time  to  be 
cepted  and  filled.  But  the  fact  that  the  Brit-  almost  paralleled  by  the  indignation  which 
ish  controlled 
the  sea  m  a  d  e 
it  impossible  for 
the  Teutonic 
allies  to  get  like 
assistance  on 
this  side  of  the 
water.  German 
orders  would 
have  been  as 
gladly  filled,  but 
no  cargo  of  mu- 
nitions for  the 
German  army 
could  ever  have 
succeeded  in 
reaching  a  Ger- 
man port.  Out 
of  this  situation 
grew  a  natural 
but  unjust  re- 
sentment on  the 
part  of  the  Ger- 
m  a  n  p  e  o  p  1 1 
against  the  Uni 
ted  States. 

But  if  the  Bri 
tish  were  slow  in 
getting  mto  ac 
tion  by  land. 
their  fleet  from 
the  first  day  dt 
the  war  exerted 
a  controlling 
force  on  its  desi 
tinies.  It  was 
100  per  cent, 
efficient  in  pre- 
venting Ger 
many  from 
drawing  at  all 
upon  the  Lnited 
States  for  mu- 
nitions   of  war. 

Unhappily  its  success  m  maintaining  a  lawful  the  United  States  felt  bec;*use  of  the  aggres- 
blockade  and  preventing  contraband  of  war      sionsofthe  British. 

fromreachingGermanportsledth;  Britishtogo  This,  however,  has  ilothing  to  do  with  the 

farbeyondany  regulationofinternationaltrade  record  of  the  efficiency  of  the  British  fleet  as 
hitherto  justified  by  internatio»ial  law.  The  compared  with  the  earlv  inefficiency  of  the 
legitimate  basi'iess  of  American  citizens  was  British  army.  In  lacer  chapters  v.:'I  be  told 
wantonly  interfered  with,  the  1  jreign  mailj  of     the  story  of  ths  naval  operations  ot  the  war. 


Panic  stricken  mobs  escaping  from  Antwerp.     The  congestion  was  terrific  around  the  end  of  the  bridge 
that  furnished  the  only  means  of  escape  from  the  beleaguered  .Antwerp 


28 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


C>.'p\Ti^'ht.  191-.  National  (Jco^raphic  Marazice 

SARAJEVO,  WHERE  THE  ARCHDUKE  FRANCIS  FERDINAND  WAS  ASSASSINATED 


30 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Emperor  Francis  Joseph  and  the  Archduke  Francis  Ferdinand,  whose  assassination  in  Sarajevo  lighted  the  great  European 

conflagration 


Enough  here  to  say  that  at  the  very  outset 
German  commerce  was  swept  from  the  seas, 
the  German  fleet  bottled  up  in  Kiel,  whence 
it  could  make  only  sporadic  raids  without 
material  bearing  on  the  fortunes  of  the  war, 


and  a  blockade  established  that  deprived  the 
Teutonic  allies  of  any  supplies  of  munitions 
of  war  from  neutral  countries  and  speedily 
made  the  question  of  food  supplies  for  their 
people  one  of  the  greatest  gravity. 


The  Imperial  (iiiard  passing  in  review  before  Emperor  William.     At  the  left  of  the  Kaiser  is  General  Lowenfeldt  and  at  the 

extreme  right  General  von  Buelow.     The  latter  was  the  first  general  to  fall 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


31 


Defending  the  Belgian  swamps.     Every  ditch  and  canal  was  used  as  a  line  of  desperate  resistance 


CHRONOLOGY  OF  THE  DIPLOMACY  THAT  LED  TO  WAR— 1914 


June  28.  Assassination  of  the  Archduke  Francis  Ferdinand, 
heir  to  the  throne  of  Austria. 

July  23.     ."Xustria's  ultimatum  to  Servia. 

July  24.     Russia  asks  Austria  for  delay.     Austria  refuses. 

July  25.  Servia  concedes  all  .Austrian  demands,  save  that 
Austrian  officials  shall  be  allowed  to  participate  in  the 
inquiry  by  Servians  into  the  assassmation. 

July  27.  Russia  notifies  .'\ustria  that  it  will  not  permit  in- 
vasion.' of  Servian  territory — Semiofficially  Germany  inti- 
mates that  no  one  shall  mterfere  m  the  controversy  between 
Austria  and  Servia — Sir  Edward  Grey  proposes  mediation 
between  the  two  countries  embroiled  by  a  conference  of 
ambassadors  in  London — France  and  Italy  accept;  Ger- 
many and  -Austria  decline. 

July  28.     Austria  announces  a  state  of  war  with  Servia. 

July  29.  Russia  calls  all  reservists  to  the  colors.  Germany 
insists  that  Austria-Hungary  shall  negotiate  further  with 
Russia.     Nothing  comes  of  the  suggestion. 

July  30.  Germany  asks  Russia  to  stop  mobilization  within 
twenty-four  hours.  England  notifies  Germany  that  if 
genera-l  conflict  shouJd  occur  it  will  not  remain  neutral. 

July  3  I.  Russia  ignores  German  ultimatum  and  declares  that 
it  will  not  allow  Servia  to  be  crushed. 

August  I.  Germany  declares  war  upon  Russia.  The  French 
government  orders  general  mobdization. 

August  2.  Germany  begms  the  mvasion  of  France  through 
(he  neutral  Duchy  of  Luxemburg.  England  asks  Germany 
}f  she  w'ill  respect  the  neutrality  of  Belgium,  (lermany 
declines  to  answer. 


August  3.  Germany  sends  ultimatum  to  Belgium  demanding 
free  passage  for  her  troops.  Belgium  refuses.  Demands 
that  Germany  respect  her  neutrality,  and  proclaims  martial 
law.  Kmg  Albert  of  Belgium  asks  England's  diplomatic 
intervention  to  safeguard  Belgian  neutrality.  The  German 
Ambassador  to  London  promises  that  if  England  will  remain 
neutral  Germany  will  not  attack  the  northern  and  western 
coasts  of  France.  Italy  proclaims  neutrality.  German 
Emperor  gives  the  Russian  .Embassador  his  passports. 
France  declares  that  war  with  Germany  began  •.utomatically 
with  invasion  of  her  territory. 

August  4.  English  ultimatum  to  Germany  demands  satis- 
factory assurance  on  the  neutrality  of  Belgium.  King 
George  orders  the  mobilization  of  the  British  army.  At 
midnight,  no  reply  to  ultimatum  having  been  received  from 
Germany,  war  is  declared. 

August  5.     Germans  attacked  Liege,  Belgium. 

August  6.     Austria-Hungarj'  declares  war  on  Russia. 

August  8.  Portugal  announced  its  decision  to  support  Great 
Britain  (while  technically  Portugal  thus  a.ssumed  a  position 
of  hostility  to  Germany  she  did  not  participate  in  actual 
hostilities  during  the  first  two  years  of  the  war). 

August  g.     Servia  declares  war  against  Germany. 

August  10.     France  declares  war  on  Austria. 

August  13.  .Austria  and  Great  Britain  each  declare  war  on 
the  other. 

August  23.     Japan  declares  war  on  Germany. 


C  H  .\  P  T  E  R     II 


THK  INVASION  OF  BELGIUM DASH  UPON  PARIS PLAN  OF  GER- 
MAN CAMPAIGN HEROISM  OF  BELGIANS MARVELOUS  EFFI- 
CIENCY   OF  GERMANS FALL    OF    NAMUR SIR  JOHN    FRENCH's 

RETREAT GERMAN     DEFEAT    AT    THE     MARNE PARIS     SAVED 


A  Fi 


DDRESSING     a 

gathering  of  dis- 
tinguished scien- 
tists, educators, 
and    army    offi- 
cers of  high  com- 
mand   in    1910, 
Emperor     \\  illiam 
uttered  this  declara- 
tion of  his  own  om- 
nipotence: 

^'Considering  my- 
M'lf  as  the  instrument 
of  the  Lord,  zvithont 
heeding  the  views  and 
opinions  of  the  day,  I 
go  my  way." 
Accepting  this  as  the  rule  of  conduct  of  a 
monarch,  vested  with  almost  irresponsible 
and  unfettered  command  over  the  lives  of 
millions  of  men,  and  all  the  resources  of  a 
great  nation,  we  can  understand  better  the 
early  events  of  the  great  war.  For  the  first 
act  of  the  German  Emperor  was  to  brush  aside 
every  treaty  right  or  obligation  which  hamp- 
ered his  freedom  of  action,  or  for  a  moment 
put  in  jeopardy  his  plan  of  conquest. 

This  plan  was  in  brief  to  dash  into  France, 
seize  Paris,  and  subdue  the  French  people  in 
the  first  sixty  days  of  the  war.  The  Ger- 
mans estimated  that  the  great  inert  mass  of 
the  Russian  fighting  forces  could  not  be 
mobilized  and  brought  into  effective  action 
on  the  eastern  frontier  of  Germany  in  less 
time  than  this,  so  they  would  be  able  to  crush 
France  and  return  to  their  own  eastern  frontier 
in  time  to  save  it  from  the  horrors  of  a  Rus- 
sian invasion.  Long  before  the  declaration 
of  war  the  German  troops  planning  this 
invasion  of  France  were  massed  along  the 
frontier.  The  French  should  have  recog- 
nized, and  perhaps  did  recognize,  that  it  was 


not  along  the  French  frontier,  extending 
from  the  neutral  Duchy  of  Luxemburg  to  the 
neutral  territory  of  Switzerland  that  the 
heaviest  German  divisions  were  arrayed. 
Instead  it  was  along  the  line  that  separates 
Germany  from  Luxemburg  and  from  Belgium. 
The  reason  for  this  was  promptly  shown  upon 
the  declaration  of  war.  Going  his  way, 
heedless  of  the  views  and  opinions  of  the 
day,  and  equally  of  the  treaties  to  which 
his  government  was  a  party,  the  Kaiser 
instantU'  filled  the  Duch\' of  Luxemburg  with 
his  troops.  The  reigning  Duchess  protested 
mildly  and  went  into  retirement.  Her  coun- 
try had  no  force  adequate  to  check  the  tor- 
rent of  two  hundred  thousand  or  more  of  armed 
Germans  which  overwhelmed  it.  The  in- 
vasion was  lawless,  how  lawless  the  Chance- 
lor  of  the  German  Empire  at  once  confessed 
when  in  a  speech  to  the  Reichstag  he  said: 

"  H'e  are  now  in  a  state  of  necessity,  and 
necessity  knows  no  law!  .  .  .  We  were 
compelled  to  override  the  just  protest  of  the 
Luxemburg  and  Belgian  governments.  The 
wrong — /  speak  openly — that  we  are  commit- 
ting zve  will  endeavor  to  make  good  as  soon  as 
our  military  goal  has  been  reached.  Anybody 
zvho  is  threatened,  as  zve  are  threatened  and  is 
lighting  for  his  highest  possessions,  can  have 
only  one  thought — how  he  is  to  hack  his  way 
through." 

The  plan  of  campaign  which  the  German 
military  staff — as  busy  almost  in  time  of 
peace  as  in  time  of  war — had  prepared  con- 
templated the  invasion  of  France  from  three 
points  b\'  three  armies: 

The  Army  of  the  Meuse,  with  its  base  at 
Aix-la-Chapelle  was  to  enter  Belgium,  re- 
duce the  forts  at  Liege  and  march  on  Paris 
by  a  westerh'  route,  taking  in  passing  the 
forts  at  Namur  and  at  Lille. 

The  Army  of  the  Moselle  already  concen- 


33 


34 

trated  in  Luxemburiiwas 
to  enter  France  at 
Longwy  and  pro- 
ceed to  Pans, 
subduing 
hv    the 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


No   army  of  all  history 

ever    took    the    field 

so    splendidly 

equipped  with 

new  and 

terrible 

engines 

of  war 


"^i^.: 


fort- 
resses 
at    Ver- 
dun   and 
R  h  e  i  m  s  . 

The  Army  <if 
the  Rhine,  the  only 
one  not  making  neutral 
territory  a  part  of  its 
pathway,  was  to  have  its 
base  at  Strassburg  and 
cross  the  French  frontier  near  Nancy.  By 
this  last  route  the  Prussians  thrice  before 
had  reached  the  French  capital. 

The  Army  of  the  Meuse  was  made  up  of 
the  very  flower  of  the  German  army,  for 
to  it  was  assigned  the  task  which  was  ex- 
pected to  be  the  most  glorious  and  the  most 
spectacular,  and,  proving  to  be  both  of  those, 
was  the  most  arduous  as  well.  Upon  it  the 
eyes  of  the  civilized  world  were  riveted  for 
weeks.  Against  it  fought  Belgians,  British, 
and  French  from  the  very  outset  of  its  opera- 
tions, and  before  it  merged  its  identity  in  the 
general  German  line  it  had  withstood  the 
assaults  of  mfantry,  cavalry,  and  artillery 
— and  all  with  hardly  a  stop  for  food  or  sleep; 
it  had  met  and  fought  Turcos  from  French 
Africa,  and  Sikhs  and  Hindoos  from  British 
East  India.  Commanded  by  General  von 
Emmerich,  it  numbered  at  its  entrance  upon 
Belgian  soil  about  200,000  men,  which 
number,  oft  depleted  by  heavy  fighting,  was 
continually  reenforced  until  it  approached 
the  impressive  ,total  of  a  half  million  armed 
men. 


Belgian  field  pieces  masked  by  being  placed  amongst 
bushes  and  partly  screened  by  straw 


and    indicated    to 


a  s 
the 
,^  armies  of 
Germany, 
and  particu- 
arly  the  Army 
of  the  Meuse  in  this 
campaign.  Aeroplanes 
and  dirigibles  spied  out 
the  way,  reported  the 
positions  of  the  enemy, 
the  artillery  the  range. 
Motor  cars  carried  soldiers  swiftly  from 
point  to  point  and  hurried  light  guns  into 
action;  heavilv  armored,  they  had  their  place 
on  the  line  of  battle,  and  marked  with 
the  Red  Cross  they  carried  the  wounded  to 
places  of  safety.  Rapid-fire  guns  poured 
out  streams  of  bullets  like  water  from  a 
hose,  and  were  so  compactly  built  that  one 
could  be  packed  on  a  horse,  or  carried  on  two 
motor  c^•cles.  Siege  guns  with  a  range  of  ten 
miles,  of  a  calibre  and  weight  never  before 
thought  capable  of  passage  along  country 
roads,  were  dragged  by  traction  engines  or  by 
their  own  motors  at  a  rate  of  eight  miles  an 
hour — guns  that  twenty  years  ago  would 
have  been  useless  in  any  field  because  of  their 
immobility.  By  the  use  of  flat  platforms  on 
the  circumference  of  their  wheels — "cater- 
pillar wheels  "  they  called  them — these  can- 
non could  be  dragged  by  motors  even  over 
plowed  fields.  They  throw  an  armor-piercing 
shot  weighing  800  pounds,  and  at  seven 
miles  will  demolish  a  target  of  a  few  feet 
square.     It  was  their  deadly  accuracy  that 


THE    NATIONS     AT    WAR 


beat  down    Bel<:ian   resistance  at  Liege  and 
Namur. 

Earl\-  in  tlie  afternoon  of  Tuesdax',  Aii<;iist 
4,  1914,  the  first  gun  of  the  war  of  the  nations 
was    fired,    when    the    outposts    of  General 

\onEmmerich'sarmy 

excliangetl  shots  with 
the  Belgian  outposts 
at  Liege.  Ihe  mo- 
ment will  always  be 
historic.  Not  only 
did  it  mark  the  begin- 
ning of  the  greatest 
war  that  has  ever 
devastated  Europe, 
but  it  was  forty-four 
years  to  the  day,  and 
almost  to  the  hour, 
since  the  forerunners 
of  these  invaders  had 
crossed  the  French 
frontier  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  Franco- 
Prussian  War. 

At  the  time  the 
whole  world  attached 
too  great  importance 
to  thecharacterot  the 
early  battles  of  Bel- 
gmm.  But  too  much 
importance  could  not 
bt  attached  to  their 
significance  for  the 
delay  caused  by  the 
heroic  resistance  of 
the  little  Belgian 
army  at  the  outset 
unquestionably  saved 
Paris  by  enabling  the 
French  to  shift  their 
dispositions  of  troops 
to  meet  an  attack 
from  an  unexpected 
quarter,  and  in  thus 
saving  Paris  and 
France  probably  de- 
termined the  ultimate 
outcome  of  the  war. 

Over  the  action  of 
the  Belgians  directed 


throughout  the  war  bitterly  denounced  King 
Albert  for  his  course,  which  they  declared 
to  be  dictated  partly  by  sentimental  reasons, 
and  parrl\  through  personal  arrogance.  1  he\' 
pointed  out  that  the  Duchy  of  Luxemburg, 


SWITZERLAND, 


The  map  shows  approximately  the  extent  of  the  German  advance  to  September  6,  1914. 
The  heavy  lines  with  arrow-tips  show  in  a  general  way  the  main  (lerman  advance;  the  heavj' 
dotted  lines,  routes  of  parallel,  but  lesser  columns.  .All  the  territory  between  the  line  touching 
Antwerp,  Ghent,  Bruges,  and  Amiens  and  the  main  line  was  filled  with  Girman  troops.  Raiding 
parties  also  reached  Ostend  and  Boulogne 


by  their  heroic  king,  Albert,  in  thus  sacri- 
ficing themselves  and  exposing  their  country 
to  the  most  cruel  and  indefensible  ravages 
recorded  since  the  Dark  Ages,  there  has  raged 
some  conflict  of  opinion. 

The     Germans     and     their     sympathizers 


having  accepted  the  inevitable  and  allowed 
its  territory  to  be  used  at  once  as  a  place  of 
concentration  and  a  highway  for  German 
troops  preparing  for  the  invasion  of  France, 
had  suffered  no  spoliation  nor  destruction  of 
property  and  had  been  reimbursed  for  what- 


36 


THE     NATIONS    AT     WAR 


ever  damage  the 
passing  troops 
inflicted  upon 
the  property  of 
its  inhabitants. 
They  declared 
that  had  Bel- 
g  i  u  m  been 
equally  acquies- 
cent in  the  Ger- 
man  plan  of 
campaign,  the 
troops  marching 
through  would 
have  been  in- 
structed to  re- 
spect property, 
whatever  inci- 
dental damage 
had  been  done 
would  have  been 
paid  for,  and  the 
word  of  the  Ger- 
man  govern- 
ment would 
have  been 
pledged  to 
maintain  there- 
after the  com- 
plete independ- 
ence and  the 


Housl'  in  Antwerp  binashed  by  a  German  sIkU 


neutrality  of 
Belgium. 

1  he  answer, 
of  course,  was 
complete.  The 
word  of  Prussia 
was  already 
pledged  to  re- 
spect and  to  pro- 
tect the  neutral- 
ity of  Belgium. 
It  that  pledge 
was  violated  at 
a  timewhenGer- 
ni  a  n  y  really 
needed  Belgian 
assistance 
against  a  hostile 
Europe,  v.hat 
chance  was  there 
that  it  would  be 
respected  by  the 
triumphant 
government  of 
the  Kaiser  after 
the  rest  of 
Europe  had  been 
brought  to  his 
teet.?  Hopeless 
as  resistance  ap- 
peared, the  Bel- 


'">'-«.*^.-r'* 


The  vanguard  of  the  Russian  army  marching  upon  Austria-Hunearv 


Cop'Ti^-lit  by  Underwooii  iS;  I'n  (erwrod 


THE     NATIONS     A'l"    WAR 


gi  a  ns  felt  as- 
sured that  if  they 
were  to  save 
their  intefjrity  as 
a  nation  they 
must  Hght,  and 
trusttotheAllies 
to  win  for  them 
that  independ 
ence  whicli  they 
could  not  secure 
by  their  own  in- 
dependent ettort 
and  for  the  pro- 
tection of  which 
they  could  not 
trust  to  German 
assurances. 

As  a  result 
their  country 
suffered  as  no 
nation  has  in 
modern  times. 
Their  peop  le, 
such  as  survived 
the  immediate 
shockof  combat, 
were  reduced  to 
the  point  of 
starvation  and 
for  years  lived 
only  through  the 


37 

charitv    of    the 

other 

lations  of 

the 

w  o  rid. 

Their 

beautiful 

and   1 

1  1  s  t  0  r  1  c 

towns 

were    re- 

duced 

to  rums, 

rheir 

commerce 

1  a  1  ci  p 

rostrate, 

tncir 


m 


dust 


rv 


Bridge  over  wliicli  thousands  escaped.  This  picture  ot  the  bank  of 
the  Scheldt  shows  the  slender  pontoon  bridge  across  which  the  army  and 
many  refugees  escaped  from  .-Antwerp 


destroyed  ex- 
cept as  it  was  op- 
crated  by  their 
p.eople  working 
;:s  slaves  under 
the  eyts  cf  Ger- 
man officers  for 
the  advantage 
of  the  German 
cause. 

No  other  such 
record  of  nation- 
al self-sacrifice 
is  recorded  m 
history. 

But  great  as 
vvas  the  signifi- 
cance ot  the  Bel 
gian  resistance 
there  has  been 
a  tendency  to 
exaggerate     the 


ItlikIi  iiiLinii.   k:  .il;:   ii  bore  Irtquent  testimony  to  the  ;;: 


Ciipyrikihtby  Inteni.ilional  .Nt\\S  service 

-rsonal  initiative  of  the  soldiers 


38 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Czar  Nicholas  tasting  a  sample  ol  the  soup  th.it  was  served  to  the  Russian  army 


THE     NATIONS     AT    WAR 


39 


character  of  the  battles  fought  there  in  the 
first  ten  davs  of  the  war  of  the  nations. 
What  reallv  happened  was  that  with  the 
.ery  first  action  the  German  artillery  proved 
so  vastly  superior  to  the  Belgian  forts,  and 
the  German  cohorts  so  enormously  outnum- 
bered the  Belgian  defenders  that  there  could 
not  for  a  moment  be  any  question  as  to  the 
issue. 

Liege,  the  point  of  first  attack,  had  been 


Belgian  troops  manned  these  forts,  or  de- 
fended the  gaps  between  them.  Two  hun- 
dred thousand  Germans  demanded  that  the 
wav  be  opened.  Worse  than  all,  the  equip- 
ment of  the  forts  had  not  been  kept  up  to 
date  and  their  armament  was  entirely  inade- 
quate for  their  defence.  In  fact,  the  first  and 
largest  fort,  Fleron,  was  practically  silenced 
by  the  field  guns  of  the  Germans,  who  had  not 
yet  had  time  to  bring  up  their  heavy  siege 


....  iii.;h!h>   L'nder., 

Refugees  from  the  outlying  villages  fleeing  to  Brussels  for  pro- 
tection against  the  advancing  German  army 


looked  upon  as  a  fortified  point  of  prodigious 
strength.  Its  fortresses  wete  of  the  type 
which  military  science  up  to  that  time  had 
fixed  upon  as  approaching  the  impregnable. 
1  hey  were  wrought  steel  turrets,  curved  so  as 
to  offer  the  poorest  possible  target  for  shells, 
looking  like  great  black  mushrooms,  squat- 
ting close  to  the  ground  with  a  ditch  sur- 
rounding each  and  a  broad  cleared  space 
on  every  side.  Underground  passages  con- 
nected the  nine  turrets,  and  there  was  the 
usual  provision  of  mines,  ditches,  electrified 
barbed-wire  entanglements,  and  other  de- 
vices for  defence.      But  onlv  twentv  thousand 


guns,  which  afterward  proved  the  sensation 
of  the  first  weeks  of  the  war.  The  fall  of 
this,  the  most  powerful  of  the  Belgian  works, 
opened  a  gap  in  the  defences  of  Liege,  which 
was  held  with  unprecedented  gallantry  for 
forty-eight  hours  by  a  comparatively  few  men, 
the  greater  part  of  whom  were  little  better 
than  civilians  in  training.  During  this  period 
the  Germans  brought  up  their  big  howitzers, 
smashed  two  supporting  fortresses,  and  opened 
the  way  to  the  city  to  the  German  advance. 

Ignoring  for  the  time  the  other  works  still 
held  by  the  Belgians,  the  Germans  entered 
Liege,  made  it  a  base  of  supplies,  and  pressed 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


on  to  the  interior  of  Belgium,  \yiiile  their 
armies  were  thus  advancing,  the~;6.^her  forts 
were  reduced  by  a  savage  artillery  fire. 
General  Leman,  the  Belgian  commander, 
in  the  city,  established  himself  m  the  fort  of 
Loncin,  which  was  to  the  west  of  Liege  and 
intended  to  defend  that  city,  not  to  sustain 
an  attack  from  it.  The  German  possession 
of  Liege  enabled  them  to  attack  the  fort 
from  its  so-called  blind  side.  Almost  wholly 
unable  to  return  the  fire,  the  gallant  defenders 
held  their  ground  until  after  a  resistance  of 
days  the  fort  was  literally  battered  to  pieces, 
its  garrison  all  killed 
or  wounded  and  the 
General  himself  found  b\ 
the  attacking  force  ap- 
parentlydeadinthe  ruins. 
Liege  furnished  the  first 
proof  of  the  utter  worth 
lessness  in  the  face  of 
modern  artillery  of  the 
type  of  fort  which  the 
nations  of  Europe  up  to 
that  time  had  been  rely- 
ing upon.  Thereafter  the 
few  forts  that  were  able 
to  resist  artillery  were 
simply  left  for  the  time, 
while  the  invading  army 
swept  by  into  the  desired 
territory,  leaving  a  com- 
paratively small  detach- 
ment   to     prevent     any 


ottensive  operation  on  the  part 
of  the  garrison.  This  was  done 
at  Lille,  Namur.  and  Maubeuge. 
Naniur,  which  all  France  thought 
would  hold  back  the  German  tide 
tor  a  month  at  least,  detained  them 
but  a  day.  As  the  war  progressed 
and  new  solutions  were  found  for 
the  problems  it  offered,  the  trench 
and  the  barbed-wire  entangle- 
ment, hastily  thrown  up  by  the 
troops  in  the  very  moment  of  ac- 
tion and  readily  replaced  by  other 
like  works  when  abandonment 
becarhe  necessary,  took  the  place 
fof  the  huge  fortresses.  Even  Ver- 
dun, whose  resistance  for  months, 
indeed,  for  more  than  two  years, 
to  the  persistent  attacks  of  the 
Germans  under  the  Crown  Prince 
was  saved  not  by  its  own  guns, 
but  by  the  network  of  trenches 
and  concealed  field  artillery  by  which  it  was 
surrounded  on  every  side. 

The  very  first  test  of  the  great  German  and 
Austrian  siege  cannon  forced  the  abandon- 
ment as  worthless  of  that  long  line  of  ponder- 
ous fortresses  that  France  had  built  along 
the  German  frontier  and  upon  which  the  Re- 
public had  spent  more  than  5^1,500,000,000,  or 
more  than  tlie  whole  South  African  War  cost 
Great  Britain  or  the  Manchurian  \^'ar  had 
cost  Russia. 

It  was  on  Saturday,  the  15th  of  August, 
the   two   chief  German    armies    began    their 


.^11  that  was  left  from  the  disaster.     This  dog  cart  and  its  contents  were 
prosperous  family  saved  from  ruin 


that  a  once 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


41 


advance  along  the  Belgian  railways 
which  have  their  point  of  concen- 
tiation  in  Liege  across  the  Belgian 
plain.  The  dela\'  which  had  oc- 
curred on  the  frontier  had  enabled 
the  French  to  hurry  back  part  of 
their  forces  from  Alsace-Lorraine 
which  they  had  imaded  immedi- 
ately upon  the  declaration  of  war. 
In  passing  it  may  be  noted  that  at 
first  the  French  forces  in  these 
former  provinces  of  the  Republic 
had  carried  all  before  them,  the 
main  attention  of  the  German 
military  command  being  directed 
toward  the  Belgian  frontier.  But 
the  French  advance  there  was 
speedily  checked  and  the  necessity 
for  calling  back  a  large  portion  of 
the  troops  to  meet  the  German 
advance  through  Belgiumdestroyed 
the  importance  of  the  Alsace- 
Lorraine  campaign  during  the  first 
half  of  the  war. 

To  meet  the  greater  German 
menace  the  French  troops  were  hurried  into  a 
position  near  Namur,  where  in  cooperation 
with  the  British  expeditionary  force  they 
formed  a  line  crossing  the  River  Sambre  at 
Charleroi  and  forming  a  sharp  angle  behind  the 
River  Meuse.  Along  this  line  were  arrayed 
about  250,000  men  of  whom  the  British  num- 
bered about  100,000.  Pressing  down  upon 
them  in  parallel  lines  through  Belgium  were 
not  less  than  500,000  Germans,  delayed  some- 
what but  not  long  re- 
strained by  the  gallant 
resistance  of  the  Belgians. 

The  advance  was  one 
continuous  fight,  not  as 
in  the  Franco-Prussian 
\\  ar,  or  the  American 
Civil  War,  a  succession 
of  pitched  battles  with 
days,  even  weeks,  be- 
tween for  recuperation. 
So  steady  and  determined 
was  thefighting  that  even 
the  customary  armistices 
for  the  burial  of  the  dead 
after  sanguinary  combats 
were  refused  by  one  or 
the  other  combatant, 
and  the  gruesome  prac- 
tice became  customary  of 
piling  the  bodies  in  huge 


An  Impromptu  Registration.  Refugees  from  Antwerp  writing  their  names  and 
addresses  on  a  fence  to  let  their  friends  know  their  whereabouts 


pyramids  with  combustibles  and  thereto  ap- 
plying the  torch.  Vise,  Montaud,  Mons, 
Haelen,  Tirlemont  were  clashes  which  in  any 
other  war  would  have  been  reported  as  pitched 
battles.  The  official  reports  of  this  gigantic 
struggle  dismiss  them  with  the  curt  state- 
ment, "Our  forces  were  in  contact  with  the 
enemy  at  Haelen,"  or  a  reference  to  the  "af- 
fair of  outposts  at  Vise."  But  they  were  very 
real,  very  savage,  and   each   contributed   its 


The  English  recruit's  introduction  to  army  life.     Vohinteers  arriving  at  Aldershot  train- 
ing camp  are  first  taught  to  form  in  hnc  and  are  sjivcn  instructions  in  marching  in  step 


42 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Boot  inspection  at  Aldershot.     Owing  to  a  sliort  supply  new  shoes  cannot 
be  issued  to  all  volunteers  at  once,  and  so  the  most  needy  are  supplied  first 


kingdom  in  the  neighborhood  of  Ostend, 
where  the  fragment  of  the  Belgian  army 
which  had  been  beaten  indeed,  but  not 
annihilated,  maintained  itself  gallantly. 
It  was  holding  this  corner  of 
the  kingdom  of  Belgium  free 
from  German  occupation  at  the 
end  of  the  war's  second  year. 
The  action  of  the  authorities 
of  Brussels,  in  offering  no  resist- 
ance to  the  incoming  Germans 
was  dictated  by  consideration 
of  the  methods  of  revenge  and 
terrorism  adopted  bv  the  Ger- 
mans in  their  march  through 
Belgium.  War  has  never  been 
more  remorseless.  In  every 
town  and  \illage  prominent  men 
were  seized  as  hostages  and  were 
relentlessly  put  to  death  if  any 
citizen,  maddened  by  the  de- 
struction of  his  property  or  in- 
sults offered  to  his  womenkind,  dared 
to  attack  the  aggressors.  The  story 
of  German  atrocities  in  Belgium  is 
not  to  be  told  here.  It  formed  the 
subject  of  heated  diplomatic  discussion 


quota  to  the  tens  of  thousands  of  lives 
offered  up  on  the  altar  of  imperial 
ambition  and  national  vainglory. 

In  the  course  of  this  advance 
the   Belgian    capital,    Brussels, 
was   entered   without    fighting. 
The   burgomaster  of  the  city,         . 
wisely   advised  by  the  United       ; 
States   Minister,   Brand    Whit- 
lock,  met  the  approaching  in- 
vaders with  the  assurance  that 
there  would    be   no    resistance 
offered   and   that    every    effort 
would  be  made  to  prevent  un- 
authorized attacks  on  the  Ger- 
man   troops.      The    city    was 
thereupon     made      the     head- 
quarters   of  the  Army   of  the 
Meuse,   and    by   imperial   pro- 
clamation the  Kaiser  declared 
Belgium  to  be  part  of  the  Ger- 
man Empire.     King  Albert  and  the 
remnant  of  the  Belgian  government 
retired  to  Antwerp,  and  when  that  city 
subsequently    fell    into    the    German 
hands    they    retired    further   to    the 
-jxtieme   southwestern  corner  of  the 


Doing  signal  corps  work.  Some  of  the  more  intelligent  recruits  are 
detailed  for  signal  corps  duties  and  are  given  a  rigorous  trauimg.  The 
primary  lesson  is  in  "wig-wagging"  with  flags 


THE     NATIONS     AT    WAR 


43 


A  RUINED  LIEGE  IX)R  f 
A  steel  turret  overthrpwn  and  masonry  dernolished  by  German  siege  guns 


44 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Germans  find  work  for  their  prisoners  of  war.     This  photograph  shows  British  soldiers  caimired  by  the  CiL-rmans  engaged  in 

building  fences  near  Berlin 


in  all  the  countries  involved.  It  was  inves- 
tigated by  a  distinguished  commission,  headed 
by  Viscount  James  Bryce,  whose  name  alone 
carries  conviction  of 
intellectual  honesty 
to  all  informed 
readers.  In  every 
war  men  lose  in  some 
degree  the  sem- 
blance of  humanity 
and  cast  ofi'  the 
veneer  of  civiliza- 
tion. It  is  impos- 
sible, however,  to 
read  both  sides  of 
the  discussion  of 
German  methods 
during  the  first 
weeks  of  the  invasion 
of  Belgium  without 
beingconvinced  that 
the  extreme  sever- 
ity, approaching 
barbarism,  was  both 
definitely  ordered 
and  systematically 
encouraged  by  the 
German  command- 
ers in  pursuance  of 
the  "  policy  of  fright- 
fulness,"  and  with 
the  purpose  of  over- 


lie elteel  ut  one  bh 


awing  at  the  very  outset  a  population  which 
they  knew  they  would  hold  in  military  sub- 
jection  during  the    period   of  the  war,   and 

hoped  to  retain  as 
vassals  thereafter. 
It  is  significant  that 
as  the  conquest  of 
Belgium  became 
more  complete  the 
savagery  of  the  in- 
vaders was  miti- 
gated. 

Most  shocking  to 
the  sentiment  of  the 
world  was  the  almost 
complete  destruc- 
tion of  the  quaintest 
and  most  pictur- 
esque part  of  Lou- 
\  ain,a  Belgian  town 
richly  stored  with 
treasures  of  Gothic 
art  and  architecture 
dating  from  the  per- 
iod of  the  Middle 
Ages.  This  town 
wasdestroyedbythe 
Germans  systemat- 
ically, with  military 
precision,  by  soldiers 
who  went  from  street 
to  street  filling  the 


Hole  torn  in  the  pavement  by  a  shell  in 
Antwerp 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


45 


first  stories  of  the  buildings 
>•>  ith  combustibles  and  then 
applying  the  torch.  The 
excuse  gi\en  by  General  von 
Lutwitz,  in  command,  was 
that  a  shot  fired  by  the 
burgomaster's  son  killed  a 
high  German  officer  and 
seemed  to  serve  as  a  signal 
for  snipers  in  the  windows 
and  on  roofs.  He  asserted 
that  investigation  showed 
that  the  inhabitants  were 
plotting  a  general  attack. 
upon  the  troops.  All  these 
charges  were  earnestly  de- 
nied by  the  authorities  and 
citizens  of  Louvain.  Both 
parties  to  the  controversy 
sent  commissions  to  the 
United  States  to  lay  before 
the  President  the  facts  in 
the  case. 

Nothing  in  the  course  of  the  war  indicated 
more  strikingly  the  changing  tenor  of  mili- 
tary sentiment  than  the  earnestness  with 
which  all  parties  to  this  great  conflict  be- 
sought the  good  opinion  of  the  United  States. 
All  war  is  cruel,  bloodthirsty,  barbaric,  but 
every  charge  that  either  belligerent  had  ex- 
ceeded the  necessary  ruthlessness  of  battle 
was  at  once  indignantly  repudiated  and 
every  effort  made  to  marshal  facts  in  its 
disproof.  Charges  of  the  sort  there  were  in 
plenty  and  the  destruction  of  Louvain,  com- 
ing in  the  very  first  week  of  the  war,  was 
fought  over  as  bitterly  in  the  organs  of  public 
opinion  as  it  had  been  in  the  streets  of  the 
town.  Whatever  the  excuse — and,  concern- 
ing that,  doubt  will  never  be  settled — the 
destruction  was  complete.  A  most  graphic 
description  of  it  was  written  b\'  Richard 
Harding  Davis,  the  well-known  American 
author,  who  was  held  prisoner  in  a  railroad 
car  in  Lou\ain  by  German  soldiers  while 
the  town  was  burning: 

"When  by  troop  train  we  reached  Louvain, 
the  entire  heart  of  the  city  was  destroyed 
and  fire  had  reached  the  Boulevard  Tirle- 
mont,  which  faces  the  railroad  station.  The 
night  was  windless  and  the  sparks  rose  in 
steady,  leisurely  pillars,  falling  back  into  the 
furnace  from  which  the\  sprang. 

"In  their  work  of  destruction  the  soldiers 
were  moving  from  the  heart  of  the  city  to  its 
outskirts, street  bystreet, from  house  to  house. 


How    the 
surrender     of 
Rheims    was 
demanded.     When  the  fall 
of    Rheims  was    imminent 
the  Germans  demanded  the 
surrender   of  the   city   and 
sent  two  officers   to   parley 
with     the     French.     These 
men  were  admitted  to  the  city  blindfolded 


"In  each  building,  so  German 
soldiers  told  me,  they  began  at 
the  first  floor,  and  when  that  was  burning 
steadily  passed  to  the  one  ne.xt.  There  were 
no  exceptions — whether  it  was  a  store,  chapel, 
or  private  residence,  it  was  destroyed.  The 
occupants  had  been  warned  to  go,  and  in 
each  deserted  shop  or  house  the  furniture  was 
piled,  the  torch  was  stuck  under  it,  and  into 
the  air  went  the  savings  of  years,  souvenirs 
of  children,  of  parents,  heirlooms  that  had 
passed  from  generation  to  generation. 

"The  people  had  time  only  to  fill  a  pillow- 
case and  fly.  Some  were  not  so  fortunate, 
and  by  thousands,  like  flocks  of  sheep,  they 
were  rounded  up  and  marched  through  the 
night  to  concentration  camps.  We  were 
not  allowed  to  speak  to  any  citizen  of  Lou- 
vain, but  the  Germans  crowded  the  windows, 
boastful,  gloating,  eager  to  interpret. 

"On  the  high  ground  rose  the  broken  spires 
of  the  Church  of  St.  Pierre  and  the  Hotel  de 
Ville,    and    descending   like    steps   were   row 


46 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


beneath  row  of  houses,  roofless,  with  windows 
hke  bhnd  eyes.  The  Hre  had  reached  the 
last  row  of  houses,  those  on  the  I^oulevard  de 
Jodigne.  Some  of  these  were  already  cold, 
but  others  sent  up  steady,  straight  columns 
of  flame.  In  others  at  the  third  and  fourth 
stories  the  window  curtains  still  hung,  flowers 
still  filled  the  window  boxes,  while  on  the 
first  floor  the  torch  had  just  passed  and  the 
flames  were  leaping.  Fire  had  destroyed  the 
electric  plant,  but  at  times  the  flames  made 
the  station  so  light  that  you  could  see  the 
second  hand  of  your  watch,  and  again  all  was 
darkness,  lit  only  by  candles. 
I  "You  could  tell  when  an  officer  passed  by 
;  the  electric  torch  he  carried  strapped  to  his 
chest.  In  the  darkness  the  gray 
uniforms  filled  the  station  with 
an  army  of  ghosts.  You  dis- 
tinguished men  only  when  pipes 
hanging  from  their  teeth  glowed 
red  or  their  bayonets  flashed. 

"Outside  the  station  in  the 
public    square    the     people    of 
Louvain  passed  in  an  unending 
procession,  women  bareheaded, 
weeping,  men  carrymg  the  chd- 
dren  asleep  on  their  shoulders, 
all  hemmed  in  by  the  shadowy 
army  of  gray    wolves.       Once 
they  were    halted,    and  among 
themwere  marched  ahneof men. 
They  well   knew  their   fellow- 
townsmen.     These  were  on  the 
way  to  be  shot.     And  better  to 
point  the  moral  an  officer  halted 
both     processions 
and,    climbing    to    a 
cart,    explained    why 
the  men  were  to  die. 
He  warned  others  not 
to  bring  down  upon 
themselves  a  like 
vengeance. 

"As  those  being  led 
to  spend  the  night  m 
the  ficldslooked  across 
1 1)  those  marked 
for  death  they  saw 
old  friends,  neigh- 
bors of  long  standing, 
men  of  their  own 
household.  The 
officer  bellowing  at 
them  from  the  cart 
was    illuminated    by 


A  Kriipp  aeroplane  gun.     The  two  small  tubes  at  the  top  are 
filled  with  glycerine  to  take  up  the  recoil 


the  headlights  of  an  automobde.  He  looked 
like  an  actor  held  in  a  spotlight  on  a  darkened 
stage. 

"It  was  all  like  a  scene  upon  the  stage,  so 
unreal,  so  inhuman,  you  felt  it  could  not  be 
true;  that  the  curtain  of  fire,  purring  and 
crackling  and  sending  up  sparks  to  meet  the 
kind,  calm  stars,  was  only  a  painted  backdrop; 
that  the  reports  of  rifles  from  the  dark  roon:s 
came  from  blank  cartridges;  and  that  these 
trembling  shopkeepers  and  peasants  ringed 
in  bayonets  would  not  in  a  few  minutes  really 
die,  but  that  they  themselves  and  their  homes 
would  be  restored  to  their  wives  and  chil- 
dren." 

Thursday,  August  loth,  the  German  forces 
proceeding   through    Belgium   had   massed   in 
heavy  numbers  before  Namur,  where  as  we  have 
seen  the  Anglo-French  forces  awaited  their  at- 
tack.   Namur  lies  at  the  junction  of  the  Sambre 
and  Meuse  rivers.       Its  forts,  which  up  to  that 
time  had  been  supposed   to  be  impregnable, 
formed  the  whole  support  of  the  French  right 
against  the  unexpectedly  overpowering  force 
of  the  Germans.      With  those  forts  destroyed 
there  was  no  possible  chance  for  the 
French  to  block  in  the  open  field  the 
progress  southward  into  theircountry 
of  the   German    invaders.     But    to 
the  amazement  and  the  consternation 
of  the  Anglo-French  forces  Namur 
fell  almost  with  the  first  shock  of  the 
attack.     The  Germans  entered  the 
city  the  very  day  they  arrived  before 
it.     Two    or  three  of  the  forts  held 
out  for  a  time  but  soon  succumbed, 
the  attack  of  the  Ger- 
mans upon  the  French 
line  proceeding  while 
these  forts  were  still 
unsubdued. 

Fhe  forces  opposed 
to  the  German  inva- 
sion, enumerated 
from  the  left  of  the 
line,  or  its  western 
end  which  rested  at 
Mons,  were  as  follows: 
The  British  con- 
tingent, numbering 
at  the  outset  barely 
70,000  men  under  the 
command  of  Sir  John 
Trench,  extended  to 
Charleroi,  where  it 
came   into   contact 


THE    NATIONS    AT     WAR 


47 


with  the  fifth  French  army  of  three  corps 
amoiintingto  perhaps  i  ao.ooomen.underGen- 
eral  JottVc.  This  !•  rencli  line  extended  as  far  as 
the  angle  of  the  rivers  at  Namiir,  then  bent 
sharply  in  an  angle  to  the  south  where 
along  the  Meuse  lay  three  more  army  corps 
anioimting  to  another  120,000  men.  In  all 
at  this  moment  there  were  about  400,000  men 
in  this  allied  army. 

Unsuspecting  the  marvelous  efficiency  of 
the  German  transportation  neither  of  the 
allies  imagined  that  the\'  would  be  attacked 
bv  more  than  500,000  men  at  the  utmost. 
While  this  was  conceding  a  heavy  superiority 
to  the  enemy,  j'et  with  the  advantage  of  the 
Namur  forts,  the  weakness  of  which  none 
suspected,  and  with  the  protection  of  the  two 
rivers  the  case  did  not  seem  hopeless.  At  the 
very  worst  the  allied  commanders  looked 
forward  only  to  a  slow  retirement  to  permit 
the  further  reenforcements,  which  were  com- 
ing from  England  and  from  other  sections  of 
France,  a  chance  to  reach  the  firing  line. 

What  happened  was  that  the  Namur  forts 
gave  wav  before  the  enemy's  fire  like  so 
many  paper  boxes,  and  the  German  force, 
which  had  not  been  expected  to  reach  four 
hundred  thousand,  was  in  fact  seven  hundred 
thousand.  They  had  brought  through  Bel- 
gium five  army  corps,  each  with  a  separate 
division,  under  the  command  of  General  von 
Kluck,  which  confronted 
the  two  British  corps  under 
French.  Four  more,  under 
Von  Buelow,  including  the 
Emperor's  own  imperia 
guard,  extended  from  \on 
Kluck's  right  to  Namur, 
where  the  line  was  taken  up 
hv  the  third  arm\  under  the 
Duke  of  W  urtemburg  num- 
bering five  corps. 
The  latter  had 
reached  the  field 
of  action  by  press- 
in  g  t  h  r  o  u  g  h  t  h  e 
difficult  territory 
of  the  Forest  of 
Ardennes  through 
which  the  French 
authorities  had  no 
belief  an  army 
could  move  with 
anything  like  the 
celerity  it  attained. 

The  effect  of  this 


overwhelming  force  was  that  not  only  were 
the  British  and  French  brigades  confronted 
by  superior  forces  in  their  immediate  front, 
but  the  right  of  \'on  Kluck's  army  extended 
far  beyond  the  left  Bank  of  Sir  John  French, 
while  the  left  of  the  Duke  of  Wurtemburg's 
army  likewise  extended  beyond  the  right  flank 
of  the  fourth  French  army.  Thus  the  force 
striving  to  hold  the  invaders  back  from  French 
soil  was  in  imminent  danger  of  being  flanked 
at  either  end,  surrounded,  and  annihilated. 
Had  that  happened  nothing  could  have  saved 
France.  Cities,  even  capitals,  may  be  lost  by 
a  nation  without  the  loss  of  the  war  if  its  armies 
are  still  left  in  the  field  to  continue  the 
struggle.  But  with  the  army  destroyed  the 
nation  itself  falls.  So  we  shall  see  later  that  at 
the  moment  when  Paris  itself  seemed  most  in 
danger,the  French  government,  notwithstand- 
ing the  sentimental  affection  which  would 
seem  to  dictate  the  defense  of  its  capital  to 
the  bitter  end,  nevertheless  prepared  for  its 
abandonment  and  the  concentration  of  every 
effort  upon  saving  the  army.  At  Namur 
both  allied  armies  were  in  the  gravest  peril 
from  which  they  extricated  themselves  slowly 
and  only  by  a  retreat  almost  to  the  gates  of 
Paris  conducted  with  the  most  admirable 
skill  by  General  French  and  General  Joffre,  and 
maintained  with  heroic  endurance  and  daring 
by  both  British  and  French  soldiers.  The 
unmilitary  reader  is  apt  to  think  of  a  re- 
treat as  only  an  ignominious  incident 
of  war.  So  it  is,  if  it  is  allowed  to  de- 
generate into  a  panic,  but  although  the 
circumstances  dependent  upon  the 
beginning  of  this  retirement  gave  every 
excuse  for  rout,  the  generals  and  soldiers 
kept  their  heads  and  out  of  the  dis- 
couragement of  retreat  plucked 
aurels  of  victory  on  the 


the 
the 


One  of  the  huge  German  siege  guns  with  the  so-called  caterpillar  wheels  as  a  precaution  against 

soft  roads 


48 


THE    NATlOiNS    AT    WAR 


Ma  me     almost    two 
weeks  later. 

What  happened  at 
Namur  was  that  on 
Saturday,  the  2ist  of 
August,  the  Germans 
dehvered  so  tierce  an 
assault  on  the  fourth 
and  fifth  armies  that 
both  fell  back  toward 
Mauberge.    Through 
some  error  never  ex- 
plained,   and     about 
which  the  British 
have  ever  jsince  com- 
plained bitterly,  news 
of  this  retirement  was 
not  sent  to  Sir  John 
French  until    nearly 
twenty-four  hours  later.     His  troops  were  in 
fierce  battle  with  those  of  Von  Kluck  and  at 
the  moment  did  not  under- 
stand the  overpowering  di- 
mensions   of  the    force    by 
which  they  were  attacked. 
In  the  midst  of  this  action 
word     came     to 
French  that  his 
allies  were  in  full 
retreat, and  that 
a  gap  was  open 
between  the  end 
of  his   line  and 
theirs  into  which 
the    German 
army  might  well 
have  poured, cut 
thecontinuityof 
the   allied  hues, 
and      destroyed 
their    armies. 
Out  of  this  situ- 
ation,     more 
menacing  to  his 
force  than  to  the 
French    because 
his  troops  were 
vastly  more  out- 
numbered     and 
were    enveloped 
on   either  flank, 
Sir  John  French 
plucked    ulti- 
mate   victory. 
Nothing  is  more 
difficult  than  to 


On  the  road  to  safety.  The  dog  is  much  used  as  a  draught 
animal  in  Belgium,  and  many  refugees  were  fortunate  enough 
to  get  dog  carts  in  which  to  escape 


Every  part  of  the  German  battle  lint-N,  .ui  ag);rcgate  of  .i 
been  visited  by  the  Crown  Prince 


lead  an  outnumbered 
army  to  safety  in  a  re- 
treat e.xtending  over 
a  number  of  days. 
^  ou    cannot    merely 
turn  your  back  upon 
the  enemy  and  walk 
away,  for  while   you 
are  so  doing  his  troops 
will    be    pounding 
away    at    your    rear, 
his  artillery  would  be 
m    constant  pursuit, 
unlimbering     long 
enough  to  fire  a  few 
score    shot    into    the 
retreating     columns, 
then     limbering     up 
again  and  dashingfor- 
ward  to  a  point  of  closer  contact.     The  only 
way  an  orderly  retreat  can  be  conducted  is  by 
setting    aside    one    detach- 
ment after  another  to  hold 
the  pursuing  enemy  in  check 
while  the  main  body  of  the 
retreating  army  presses  on 
to  safety.     This 
means,  of  course, 
heavy     sacrifice 
of  men  and  guns, 
but     safeguards 
the  integrity  of 
the  whole  army. 
This    sort    of 
fighting    was 
maintained     by 
both  British  and 
French  from  the 
22d    of    August 
until    about  the 
2d  of  September, 
at    which    time 
tlie     Germans 
had      reached 
the   neighbor- 
hood  of   Senlis, 
their  nearest  ap- 
proach to  Paris. 
One    Sunday, 
August  23d,  the 
British     were 
holding   their 
enemy  in  check 
outside     the 
French    frontier 
at  Mons  in  Bel- 


Imost  600  miles,  has 


I  U  K     N  AlIONS     AT     W  A  R 


W  .11  's  u  ,il  \  irtiniv  I  liin_L;ij.  ui.riK  n  ,iiul  LhiKIri  ii  w.iiniiL;  ill  tin  "  lircail  line"  at  Mallnis,  flu-  day  before  the  bombardment 
of  Antwerp  began.  Malines  was  mcluded  in  tbe  storm  of  shell,  and  the  building  in  the  background  was  set  on  fire  the  night  after 
this  picture  was  taken 


gium.  A  week  later  they  were  at  La  Fere, 
only  eighty-five  miles  from  Paris.  At  Rheims, 
whose  famous  Gothic  cathedral  became  for 
weeks  the  fa v^orite  target  for  German  guns,  the 
French  lost  the  town,  410  guns,  and  12,000 
men,  and  all  Germany  went  wild  because 
that  same  citv  had  fallen  on  precisely  the 
same  date  forty-four  years  earlier.  Later 
the  French  retook  it.  While  the  Army  of  the 
Meuse  was  thus  pushing  back  both  the 
British  and  the  French,  the  Army  of  the 
Moselle,     under     Prince     Rupprecht,    broke 


through  a  French 
hne  of  from  five  to 
eight  army  corps 
between  Nancy 
and  the  Vosges, 
defeating  them  de- 
c  i  s  i  V  e  ly.  The 
Army  of  the  Crown 
Prince,  advancing 
through  Luxem- 
burg, menaced 
Paris  from  that 
direction.  Nothing 
seemed  likely  to  in- 
tervene for  the  sal- 
v  a  t  i  o  n  of  the 
French  capital, 
from  which  the 
government  had 
fled  to  Bordeau.\ 
while  the  city  itself 
was  daily  menaced 
by  the  flight  over 
it  of  German  aero- 
planes. 

All  Germany  was 


wild  with  joy.  Her  troops  had  reduced  for- 
tresses that  had  been  expected  to  hold  out  for 
weeks,  and  had  done  nothing  but  pursue  flying 
forcesof  French  and  British  which  ofl^ered  only 
thebriefresistanceof  rearguard  battles.  "Se- 
dan Day"  approached — that  glorious  Sep- 
tember 1st  on  which,  in  1870,  Napoleon  Third 
and  the  last  great  French  army  were  trapped 
by  Von  Moltke  on  the  battleground  at  Sedan, 
cut  to  pieces,  and  forced  to  surrender.  Up 
and  down  the  streets  of  Berlin  now  marched 
cheering   mobs,   crying   for   some  great   new 

triumph  on  this 
historic  anniver- 
sary, while  German 
officers,  and  it  is 
said  even  the  Em- 
peror himself, 
gayly  made  ap- 
pomtments  to  cele- 
brate it  in  Paris  at 
the  Cafe  de  la  Paix. 
In  part  the  enthu- 
siasm of  Berlin  was 
ustified,  for  on 
that  d  a  \'  came 
news  of  the  over- 
whelming victory 
of  \  on  Hindenburg 
over  the  Russians 
at  Tannenberg  in 
East  Prussia  —  a 
victory  which  for 
more  than  a  year 
held  that  section  of 
Germany  free  from 

ps  passing  through  London  streets  on  their  way  to  the        invasion. 

front  But    in     France 


5° 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Photograph  taken  amid  bursting  shells.     This  picture  was  taken  under  fire.     The  soldiers  in  the  trenches  were  Belgians 


Sedan  Day  marked  the  beginning  of  the 
end  of  German  triumph.  It  was  almost  the 
critical  moment  which  determined  the  result 
of  the  war.  For  on  that  day  the  German 
advance  was  halted  so  near  to  Paris  that  the 
city's  church  bells  could  be  heard  during 
the  lulls  in  the  clatter  of 
musketry  along  the  op- 
posing lines. 

The  German  halt  was 
so  sudden  as  to  amaze 
all  the  world,  and  even 
Paris  was  dazed  by  the 
abruptness  of  its  respite. 
For  five  weeks  the 
enemy's  advance  had 
been  practically  without 
interruption.  There  had, 
It  IS  true,  been  no  great 
battles,  as  battles  have 
come  to  be  estimated 
m  this  colossal  war.  The 
flood  of  Teutons  clad  in 
g  r  a  y-g  r  e  e  n  ii  a  d  o  v  e  r- 
flowed  first  Belgium  then 
northern  France,  yielding 
to  no  obstacle  whatso- 
ever, pushing  back  from 
before  them  the  French 
and  English  alike,  until  at 


the  beginning  of  the  fifth  week  of  the  invasion 
it  seemed  certain  that  the  boasts  of  the  early 
days  of  the  war,  that  Paris  would  be  taken  in 
six  weeks  as  had  been  the  case  in  1871,  seemed 
certain  of  fulfillment. 

But  the  German  generals  knew  better  than 


English  convalescents  amuse  themselves 


IHK     NAIIONS     AT     WAR 


SI 


i 


<^ 


'i^%^^mm 


Making  Knglish  u■t^llt^  |Wi\mi.iiI\   ht 


either  their  soldiers  or  the  mass  of  the  people 
could  know,  that  every  day  of  the  advance 
toward  Pans  made  their  problem  harder. 
To  begm  with  the  force  opposed  to  them  was 
bemg  ceaselessly  reenforced.  Guarded  by  the 
great  gray  battleships  of  the  British  navy,  the 


A  land  of  universal  mourning.     Women  in  1  i 


transports  of  the  British  army  were  slipping 
back  and  forth  across  the  Channel  bringing 
troops  by  the  tens  of  thousands  to  the  reen- 
forcement  of  Sir  John   French.     At  Namur 
the  British  line  had  been  estimated  at  about 
seventy  thousand.     When  the  Germans  were 
halted  near  Senhs  it  num- 
bered   not    less    than 
150,000.      At  Namur, 
again,  the  French  forces 
were  estimated  at  about 
240,ooomen.      When  the 
check    was    imposed    on 
Von  Kluck  and  Von  Bue- 
lowthey  had  increased  to 
the  neighborhood  of  a  mil- 
1  ion  men.     Moreover, 
the  French  brought  into 
action  at  this  point  an  en- 
tirely fresh  army  of  nearly 
500,000  men,  which  had 
been  gathering  under  the 
eye   of  General  Gallieni, 
commandant  of  Paris,  for 
the  express  defence  of  the 
__^  capital.      While  it  is  rea- 

^^  sonable   to    believe    that 

\'on Kluck  was  aware  of 
thee.xistenceof  this  army, 

wcarins  moiirninc  for  lost  relarivcs       he    himSclf    has    recorded 


THE     NATIONS     AT     WAR 


English  "Rookies"  getting  first  instruction  in  rifle  sighting 

that  he  greatly  underestimated  its  numbers. 
It  was  a  picturesque  and  emphatically  a 
fighting  force.  In  it  were  the  famous  Foreign 
Legion,  immortalized  by  Ouida  in  her  novel, 
"  Under  Two  Flags."  Not  a  few  adventurous 
spirits  from  the  United  States  served  in  its 
ranks.    There, too, wereTurkos  from  northern 


Africa,  Apaches 
from  the  height 
of  Montmartre, 
and  Orientals 
from  the  pictur- 
esque cu„r.triec 
of  the  East. 
Thrust  entirely 
fresh  into  the 
conflict  against 
the  fatigued 
German  troops, 
this  army  pro- 
duced an  im- 
mediate and  de- 
cisive result. 

Not  only  were 
the     Allies 
stronger    at   the 
close  of  their  re- 
treat,    but     the 
Germans  were 
weaker.   Always 
during  the  pur- 
suit the  Germans 
had  outnumbered  their  adversaries;  now  had 
come  the  time  when  they  were  to   be    out- 
numbered.    The  hostile  territory  of  Belgium 
had  to  be  garrisoned  with  troops  withdrawn 
from  the  German   fighting  force.     Probably 
more  than  100,000  were  thus  taken  from  Von 
Kluck's  army.     More  serious  than  this,  how- 


Copyrii;ht,  Underwood  .S:  Underwood 

British  Marines  disembarking  at  Ostend  and  receiving  a  rousing  welcome  from  the  Belgians 


THE     NATIONS    AT     WAR 


53 


ever,  had  been  the  necessity  for  sending  back 
to  the  east  heavy  detachments  to  meet  the 
unexpectedly  prompt  and  vigorous  attack  of 
the  Russians  in  Galicia  and  East  Prussia.  Not 
less  than  five  army  corps  were  thus  disposed  oh 
And  so  it  came  about  that  when  almost  in 
sight  of  the  coveted  French  capital  on  Sep- 


end  of  this  line  on  which  the  heaviest  fighting 
had  thus  far  been  done.  Next  to  him  came 
General  von  Buelow,  whose  left  flank  in 
turn  rested  on  the  army  of  the  Prince  of 
\\  urtemburg.  Last  of  all,  to  the  east,  was  the 
Army  of  the  Crown  Prince,  starting  at  the 
German  frontier,  and  enveloping  Verdun,  the 


Uhlan  patrol  surprised  by  Belgian  armored  car 


tember  ist,  \  on  Kluck  was  forced  to  aban- 
don the  method  of  strategy  that  had  so  far 
been  wholly  successful.  He  no  longer  had 
enough  men  to  reach  around  the  left  flank 
of  the  allied  army.  Instead  he  was  obliged 
to  withdraw  his  own  right  flank,  swing  it  to 
the  eastward,  and  halt  his  ad\ance. 

W  hen  this  check  was  sustained  the  Ger- 
mans held  a  line  over  one  hundred  miles  long, 
reaching  from  Amiens  in  the  w'est  through 
Senlis,  Meau.x,  and  so  eastward  to  \erdun 
and    Toul.     \  on     Kluck    held    the    western 


long  struggle  for  the  reduction  of  which  had 
lust  begun. 

Opposed  to  Von  Kluck  was  the  Army  of 
Paris,  fresh  troops  in  the  main.  The  English 
who  had  so  long  and  stubbornlv  contested 
the  German  advance  had  now  been  shifted 
from  the  extreme  right  of  the  German  line, 
many  of  their  troops  passing  through  Paris 
to  their  new  position.  Beyond  this  command 
of  Sir  John  French  extended  the  main  line  of 
the  j-rench  army — Generals  Pau,  Desperey, 
de   1, angle,   Foch,  and   Sarrail,   all   under  the 


54 


THE     NATIONS     Al"    WAR 


English  recruits  on  skirmish  woric 


supreme  command  of  General  JofFre.  More 
than  two  million  men,  armed  to  the  teeth, 
drilled  to  the  highest  point  of  efficiency, 
equipped  with  every  imaginable  device  for 
the  prosecution  of  bloody  and  successful 
war,  and  animated  on  either  side  by  motives 
of  the  highest  patriotism,  believing  themselves 
fighting  for  their  homes,  their  countries,  and 
the  very  continuance  of  civilization,  confronted 
each   other  along  this  far-flung  battleline. 

The  country  in  which  these  colossal  armies 
were  thus  aligned  included  some  of  the  fairest 
spots  in  France. 
The  harvest  still 
stood  in  thes; 
fields,  for  the 
'peasants were  all 
in  the  army  and 
none  save  wo- 
men were  left  for 
the  harvesting. 
The  villages, 
trim  and  neat 
as  are  all  the 
little  hamlets 
of  France, 
were  swept  of 
all  men,  and 
the  women 
and  children  left 
behind  looked 
wide-eyed  out 
upon  the  scene  of 
sudden  martia 
invasion,  and 
were  soon  swal- 
lowed up  in  the 
red  torrent  of 
war. 

When    Von 


F.xamining  the  recruits'  equipment 


Kluck  finally  determined  that  there  was 
no  likelihood  of  his  taking  Paris  in  a  rush 
— and  there  are  picturesque  stories  of  the 
unwelcome  knowledge  being  forced  upon 
him  just  as  he  was  celebrating  his  "victory" 
in  champagne — he  at  once  recognized  the 
need  of  a  change  in  tactics.  Instead  of  be- 
sieging the  capital  he  determined  to  pierce 
the  French  army,  separating  its  left  wing, 
including  the  British,  from  the  right,  which 
was  based  on  the  forts  at  Verdun  and  Toul. 
To  this  end  all  parts  of  the  German  line 

■were    stripped 
and    forces  con- 
centrated    at    a 
point   between 
Sezanne     and 
Vitry  where  the 
great  drive  was 
to     be     made. 
Upon  the   army 
corps     com- 
manded    by 
General     von 
Buelow  fell  the 
burden       of 
making   the 
main    assault. 
But    to    retn- 
force   that    com- 
mand \  on  Kluck 
withd  rew  por- 
tions of  his  force 
from    the     line 
confronting    the 
French  at  Paris. 
They,    quick    to 
discoverthefact, 
a  d  \-  a  n  c  e  d     by 
their  left    flank, 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


55 


rcachinj^  beyond  the  German  right  and 
threatening  to  get  into  their  enemies'  rear. 
This  advance  menaced  the  whole  German 
armv,  and  as  da}'  by  day  the  French  kept 
pushing  forward  by  the  left,  Von  Kluck 
withdrew  his  right  until  the  whole  position  of 
his  army  was  changed.  After  four  da\s  of 
this  strategy  tlie  German  general  found  his 
right  wing  enclosed  in  a  sort  of  a  monster  \  , 
with  the  angle  to  the  west  made  up  of  the 
garrison  of  Paris,  and  that  to  the  east,  of  the 
combined  French  and  British  armies.     If  the 


von  Kluck  took  a  chance  on  the  Crown 
Prince's  being  able  to  keep  the  French  busy 
on  their  centre,  and  fairly  mvited  a  flank 
attack.  General  JofFre  took  a  chance  on  the 
allied  armies'  being  able  to  resist  the  Crown 
Prince  at  the  centre,  and  delivered  the  flank 
attack.  JofFre  more  wisely  estimated  the 
chances  of  war  and  won. 

The  country  about  the  Marne  in  which  for 
a  week  or  more  2,000,000  men  swayed  back 
and  forth,  charging  madly  and  repelling 
charges  with   steel,   ravaging  the  woods  and 


Thousands  of  Belgian  refugees  reaching  Holland 


two  arms  of  this  monstrous  nut-cracker 
should  close  together,  Von  Kluck  would  be 
caught  between  and  ground  to  powder.  On 
September  yth  they  did  in  fact  attack  at  the 
same  moment,  and  for  a  time  it  appeared  that 
the  fate  of  Von  Kluck's  force  was  sealed. 
Only  by  savage  fighting  did  he  win  clear. 

Had  the  Arm\'  of  the  Crown  Prince  on  the 
German  left  been  successful,  or  had  its  savage 
effort  to  pierce  the  French  centre  been  suffi- 
ciently menacing  to  distract  altogether  the  at- 
tention of  General  Joffre  from  the  weakened 
condition  of  the  German  right,  with  its  ex- 
posed flank,  the  German  grand  strategy 
might  have  won  out.  But  there  the  fortune 
of  war  was  against  the  Germans.     General 


\'illages  with  a  storm  of  shells  and  shrapnel, 
was  one  of  the  fairest  parts  cf  I'rancc.  Its 
fertde  fields  nov*-  trampled  mto  crimson  mire 
were  dotted  by  scores  of  trim  little  villages 
that  now  exist  only  as  clusters  of  ruined  homes 
with  their  tenants  driven  none  linows  where. 

The  forces  engaged  during  the  seven  days' 
struggle  exceeded  2,000,000,  the  Allies  being 
credited  with  1,500,000  men,  the  Germans 
with  900,000,  thougli  the  superior  ability  of 
the  latter  to  concentrate  their  forces  at  the 
point  of  attack  nullified  to  some  e.\tent  this 
discrepancy.  More  than  in  an}'  prior  strug- 
gle between  the  warring  armies  this  battle 
was  decided  by  superior  strategy  rather  than 
by  force  of  numbers,  or  more  desperate  fight- 


56 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


ing  on  the  one  side  or  the  other.  In  his  oHi- 
cial  report  General  French  made  it  clear  that 
for  three  days  the  apparent  retirement  upon 
Paris  of  the  allied  force  had  been  in  fact  a 
ruse,  designed  by  him,  in  conference  with 
General  Joffre,  to  draw  the  Germans  into  a 
more  untenable  position.  In  fact,  Von  Kluck 
detected  the  stratagem  before  his  enemies 
were  quite  ready  for  the  joint  attack  with 
which  the>'  intended  to  open  a  decisi\e  battle, 
and  his  columns  were  in  full  retreat  on  the 
6th  before  the  French  attack  was  delivered. 
Bv  the  9th  the  Germans  w-ere 
forced  back  across  the  Maine. 
From  the  moment  that  the 
Army  of  Paris  began  to 
swing  to  thenorth  and 
west  enveloping  Von 
Kluck 's  right 
and  menacing 
his  communica- 
tions there  was 
left  for  him 
but  one  hope 
— that  the 
Crown  Prince 
could  pierce 
the  French 
centre  near 
Sezanne.  But 
the  French  saw 
this  as  a  menace 
as  clearly  as  the 
Germans 
saw  it  as  a 
hope,  and 
their  cen- 
tre stood  like  a  Holland  dvke 
against  the  onrush  of  the 
German  tide.  Soon,  instead 
of  the  French  centre  it  was 
the  German  centre  that  was  imperilled,  for 
the  retirement  of  Von  Kluck  left  its  right 
flank  exposed.  By  the  loth  of  September 
the  whole  German  army  was  in  retreat  from 
the  ground  it  had  won  with  such  dash  and 
daring,  and  the  form  of  its  retreat  on  the  ex- 
treme right  where  Von  Kluck  commanded  was 
very  like  a  rout,  with  cannon  and  munitions 
of  war  abandoned,  and  whole  regiments  cut 
ofl^  and  captured.  Four  days  of  hard  fighting 
that  followed  turned  the  fortunes  of  war  against 
theGermans,  who  had  already  exulted  in  the 
prospect  of  feasting  on  the  fleshpots  of  Paris. 
In  ultimate  history  it  is  not  improbable 
that  the  fame  of  Von  Kluck  will  rest  (juite  as 


V. 


'^'."^Ji  lit 

/I       - 


Explaining  the  rifle  to  English   recruits 


securely  on  his  successful  retreat  from  the 
Marne  as  upon  his  almost  unopposed  march 
upon  Paris.  The  former  was  bv  far  the  more 
diflicult  test  of  his  generalship.  Caught  be- 
tween the  hammer  and  anvil,  outnumbered, 
with  the  morale  of  his  army  sorely  suffering 
by  the  sudden  transition  from  enthusiastic 
advance  to  precipitate  retreat,  he  yet  saved 
his  army  from  the  destruction  which  for  a 
time  seemed  imminent.  It  was  demon- 
strated in  this  retreat  that  the  German  soldier 
is  not  at  his  best  in  rearguard  fighting. 
Advancing  he  comes  on  in  dense 
columns,  heedless  of  the  execu- 
tion done  by  artillery  to 
which  so  solid  a  forma- 
tion affords  the  best 
possible  target,  sing- 
ing his  war  songs, 
and  pressing  on 
irresistibly.  But 
in  retreat  he  is 
more  inclined  to 
straggle,  and 
the  forlorn 
fighting  of  the 
-"  rearguard, 
falling  back  as 
it  fires  with  no 
hope  of  glor\% 
but  only  the  for- 
lorn  hope  of 
escape,  seems 
not  to  accord  with 
the  Teutonic  tem- 
perament. Airmen  fly- 
ing high  over  the  route 
of  Von  Kluck's  retreat  de- 
scribed the  scene  as  one  of  the 
greatest  confusion.  The  re- 
treat was  by  no  means  con- 
fined to  the  highways.  Men  alone  and  in 
groups  could  be  seen  running  across  the  fields, 
jumping  fences,  or  worming  their  wa\'  through 
hedges,  without  order  or  discipline.  1  he 
fields  were  covered  with  abandoned  arms 
and  accoutrements,  the  roads  blocked  with 
wagons  and  disabled  artillery. 

But  the  panic  was  only  on  the  fringe 
of  the  army.  In  the  main  the  movement 
was  an  orderly  retreat,  conducted  with  truly 
Teutonic  precision  to  a  new  position  prepared 
in  advance  by  the  prescience  of  the  German 
General  Stafl. 

For  amidst  all  the  shouting  aiul  the 
triumph    of    the     march    upon     Pans    that 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


57 


re  fiieies  resting  on  tiu-ir  way  out  ot  Anrwtrp.      Knirnnt;  lu-lps  tn    iniit 


prudent  and  omniscient  hoard  of  strategists 
had  foreseen  that  something  might  happen 
to  force  their  armies  awav  from  Pans  again 
at  the  very  point  of  victorv'.  This  possibil- 
ity was  never  admitted  to  the  soldiers  in  the 
ranks,  or  to  the  people  of  Berlin.  The  latter 
were  stirred  by  constant  reports  of  victories, 
roused  to  riotous  enthusiasm  by  parades  of 
captured  French  cannon  drawn  down  Unter 
den  Linden,  and  reassured 
when  Sedan  Day  passed 
without  the  news  of  the 
capture  of  Paris,  by  the  as- 
surance that  for  strategic 
reasons  General  von  Kluck 
was  seeking  a  new  line.  But 
all  the  while  along  the  Hills 
of  Champagne  and  the  Hills 
of  the  lle-de- France  men 
with  picks  and  shovels — 
captured  Belgians  manv  ot 
them — were  working  indus- 
triously' under  the  eye  ot 
German  engineer  officers, 
digging  trenches,  throwing 
up  redoubts,  laying  con- 
crete emplacements  for  can- 
non,and  makingall  arrange- 
ments for  a  line  of  defence 
at  which  the  retreating  Ger- 
mans could  make  a  stand 
against  their  now  triumph- 
ant enemy. 

This  line,  indeed,  was  one 
originally  designed  by  the 
French  for  their  second  line 
of  defence  against  an  invad- 


Bdt'ian  prls  in  holiday  costume 


ing  foe.  f  rom  La  Fere  to  Rheims  stretched  a 
line  of  French  fortresses  which,  when  the  hour 
of  trial  arrived,  proved  of  no  avail,  the  Germans 
cutting  in  between  the  most  westerlv  and 
the  Channel,  thus  turning  the  allied  flank 
and  forcing  the  abandonment  of  the  forts 
without  defence.  At  Laon  and  La  Fere  the 
German  artillery  now  held  the  very  ground 
once  occupied  by  the  French  forts,  now  dis- 
mantled. At  Rheims  the 
invaders  were  driven  from 
and  through  the  town  back 
to  the  heights  beyond, 
whence  their  heavy  artil- 
lerv",  brought  to  France  for 
the  reduction  of  Paris, 
poured  upon  the  cathedral 
city,  and  upon  the  cathedral 
itself,  that  deluge  of  shot 
and  shell  which  brought 
ruin  upon  one  of  the  noblest 
monuments  of  Gothic  art 
in  Europe,  and  roused  the 
art-loving  world  to  an  agony 
ol  fruitless  protest. 

The  new  line  thus  formed 
was  at  an  average  distance 
from  Paris  of  about  eightv 
miles.  When  the  German 
fighting  men,  scarred  and 
exhausted  after  the  retreat 
of  five  days,  threw  them- 
selves into  the  trenches  and 
faced  again  the  foe  that  only 
a  few  days  earlier  they  had 
thought  to  be  beaten,  they 
looked  back  over  a  territorv 


58 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Refugees  in  a  Church  in  France 

of  sixty  miles,  extending  from  near  the  Chan- 
nel almost  to  the  eastern  boundary  of 
France,  which  they  had  won  in  a  rush,  but 
from  which  they  had  been  fairly  driven. 
They  had  lost  heavily  in  men  and  guns. 
Driving  rains  and  swampy  country  along  the 
right  of  the  German  line  took  toll  of  the 
heavy  artillery  which  the  invaders  had  been 
rushing  on  to  Paris,  and  which  they  could 
not  withdraw  with  sufficient  speed  in  the 
face  of  the  advancing  French.  Amiens, 
Nancy,  Luneville,  all  considerable  towns, 
they  had  had  to  abandon  after  a  brief  occu- 
pation. 

While  the  right  wing  of  the  German  army 
was  thus  forced  far  back  to  its  new  line,  the 
more  eastern  line  maintained  more  nearly  the 
advanced  position  it  had  won.     For  a  time 


thpfightingwas 
fiercest    about 
\  i  t  r  y ,     and 
there  it  seemed 
that  the  Crown 
Prince's  Army 
was     to     be 
beaten     back 
and    the    Ger- 
man  centre 
pierced.     Had 
this  advantage 
been  gained  by 
the     F  r  e  n  c  li , 
nothing     could 
have  saved  the 
wing     c  o  m - 
mandedby\^on 
Kluck.   "The 
Crown    Prince, 
however,    held 
his    ground 
s  t  u  b  b  or  nly . 
On  that  part  of 
the    line    t  ii  e 
most     notable 
change    in    the 
German  posi- 
tion  was    that 
the     forces 
which  had   en- 
veloped the  his- 
toric fortress  of 
Verdun, so  that 
news  of  its  cap- 
ture had    been 
dail}'   expected 
— was  indeed 
falsely  reported  more  than  once — were  forced 
back  to  the   north.     Toul,  too,  was  wrested 
from    German    occupation,  and    Nancy  was 
swept  clear  of  the  Kaiser's  troops  which,  how- 
ever, fortified  themselves  strongly  just  north 
of  the  town.     At  only  one   point  along  the 
French    eastern   frontier  was   there   a   break 
in  the  line  of  defence;  that  was  at  St.  Mihiel, 
and  from  that  point  too,  the  Germans  were 
destined  to  be  driven. 

In  the  main,  however,  the  great  and  striking 
gains  of  the  Allies  were  made  in  the  west, 
where  the  retreat  of  the  Germans  at  points 
extended  over  sixty  miles.  While  the  Eng- 
lish and  French  were  strongly  pressing  the  foe 
in  front,  the  sorely  shattered  Belgian  army 
was  harassing  him  on  the  flank  and  rear,  re- 
occupying    Bruges,  Ghent,  and   Courtai  and 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


59 


even  menacino; 
Brussels.  \\  hen 
\'on  K luck's 
and  Von  Bue- 
low's  armies 
finallydropped, 
torn  and  ex- 
hausted, into 
t!ie  trenches 
prepared  tor 
them  on  the 
heights  beyond 
Rheims.  an.l  on 
the  hill  crests 
along  the  Aisne, 
they  found  a 
shelter  sorely 
needed,  tor  dis- 
aster was  very 
close  upon 
them.  Nor 
were  they  given 
time  to  recup- 
erate, for  al- 
most without 
appreciable  in- 
terval the  Bat- 
t I e  of  the 
Marnewas  suc- 
ceeded by  the 
even  longer 
and  fiercer  Bat- 
tle of  the  Aisne. 
An  English 
correspondent, 
George  Ren- 
wick,  followmg 
the  army  in  the 
rear — the  ig- 
noble   position 


Desperate  stand  ot   British  artillery  against  odds.     During  tlic  Battk-  nt  .Mons  a  lierman  battery 
of  ten  guns  surprised  Battery  L,  Royal  Horse  Artillery,  and  killed  most  of  its  horses  and  men  before 


it  could  get  into  action 

to  which  in  this  war  all 
war  correspondents  were  relegated — gathered 
trom  wounded  soldiers  lett  behind  some  narra- 
tives illustrative  of  the  fighting  which  they 
had  seen.  It  must  be  remembered,  however, 
that  the  individual  soldier's  knowledge  of  a 
general  battle  ranging  along  a  front  of  one 
hundred  miles  or  more  is  but  fragmentary. 
Mr.  Renwick's  narrative,  in  part,  follows: 

"Let  me  here  give  a  short  description,  pro- 
vided by  an  officer  wounded  in  the  fighting, 
of  the  struggle  which  took  place  on  the  Ruer 
Marne. 

"'We  were  in  our  positions  early  on  Fri- 
day, September  4th,'  he  said,  'but  we  did 
not  take  part  in  the  fighting  on  that  day. 
During  the  whole  of  Friday  and  Saturday  we 


had  nothing  to  do  but  to  listen  to  the  sound 
of  firing  which  was  not  far  distant  and  to 
speculate  as  to  the  result.  Late  in  the 
evening  the  order  came  instructing  us  to 
retreat,  but  in  the  course  of  our  retirement 
during  the  night  that  order  was  counter- 
manded, and  we  advanced  once  more,  taking 
up  a  strong  position  on  sloping  ground  facing 
the  river. 

"'Early  pn  Sunday  Germans  approached 
in  considerable  numbers,  with  the  apparent 
intention  of  outtlanking  us,  for  they  poured 
in  on  our  extreme  left.  "Hold  the  position," 
was  the  order  we  received,  and  I  can  tell  you 
it  was  just  the  order  we  wished,  for  how  they 
swarmed  toward  our  position!  Wav'e  after 
wave  approached,  turned,  slowed  down,  and 


THE    NATIONS     AT    WAR 


Ghent,  Belgium.     In  the  tower  at  the  left  is  the  bell  whidi  for  centuries  has  called  the  Belgians  to  war 


THE    NA'l'IONS     AT     WAR 


twenty  miles,  driving  an 
enemv  before  us  which  did 
not  put  up  even  a  show  of 
fight.  They  seldom  turned 
even  to  treat  us  to  a  volley. 
It   looked    as    though   they 


fell   away   before  the  hurricane  of  lead  with 
which  we  greeted  them. 

"'God,  but  they  were  brave!  One  can't 
deny  them  that  tribute.  But  their  artillery 
for  once  did  not  seem  to  be  as  effective  as 
usual,  and  their  fire  was  strangely  erratic. 

"'German    soldiers, 
by  the  way,  do  not  aim 
at  all    at    times. 
Ihey  came  near 
enough  to  allow 
us  to see  through 
our  glasses  the  curious 
methods    of    the    Ger- 
man   riflemen.     They 
do  not  put  their  rifles 
to  their  shoulders  and 
take    aim.     They    put 
the    butt   of  the    rifles        ....  ,         ,  ,        ^ 

...  ,1  liLSL'  are  the  real  do>;s  or 

under  their  arms   and 

simply    fire    away,   trusting   to   the  effective- 
ness of  volleys. 

"'In    the    evening   we    received    reenforce- 
ments  from  the  di- 
rection of  Meau.x,  k 
and     as     darkness                ^•^ 
fell  we  had  pushed 
back    for  the  time 
being     the     forces 
which      had      been 
thrown  against  us.' 

"Another  officer, 
w  ho     was      also 
wounded     in     the 
fighting  somewhat 
further     from    the 
extreme    left    near 
La  Ferte-Gaucher, 
told   me    that    the 
general      engage- 
ment there  was  an  ex- 
tremelv    hot    one.     It 
went  on  with  varying 
results      during       the 
whole  of  Sunday  night, 
but    the    most    severe 
fighting  took  place  on 
Monday  morning. 

"'Then,'  he  said, 
'  the  enemy's  resistance 
collapsed  in  a  strangeK' 
sudden  manner.  Just 
as  we  began  to  advance 
I  was  knocked  down, 
but  I  am  told  we  ad- 
vanced something  like 


war.     The  Belgians  use  them  to  draw  batteries  of  Lewis  guns 

had  suddenly  run  completely  out  of  ammu- 
nition.' 

"Another  soldier  was  able  to  take  up  the 

story.     In    the 
course  of  their 
hurried  retreat 
the      Germans 
left  the  ground 
simply  littered 
with  dead  and 
wounded, 
though        they 
could    be    seen 
carrying    off 
many     of    the 
latter.     A  Ger- 
man      detach- 
ment   was    cut 
off  and  the  ad- 
vancing   forces 
took    ten   guns 
and     several 
hundred      pris- 
oners.        Some 
ot    the    prisoners    con- 
firmed   the    statement 
that   the   enemy   were 
very  short   of   ammu- 
nition, and  added  that 
they  were  compelled  to 
husband  their  rations. 
"The  German  losses 
must  everywhere  have 
been       exceedingly 
heavy.       An     infantry 
officer    wounded    near 


Making  friends  with  the  Belgians 


62 


THE     NATIONS     AT    W  A  K 


Dutch  soldiers  on  their  way  to  guard  the  frontier 


A  company  of  the  Kuyal 


I'.n;;inLers  of  tile  British  army 
in  a  sand  pit 


.pent  three  weeks 


Meaux  on  the 
8th  told  me 
two  German 
army  corps 
were  in  action 
d  u  r  i  11  <;  that 
day  and  on  the 
7th,  and  that 
in  one  trench 
alone  he 
counted  6oo 
dead.  Even  on 
Tuesday,  it 
would  appear, 
the  German 
commanderdid 
not  perceive 
that  his  south- 
ward mo  V  e  - 
m  e  n  t  was 
placing  him  in 
very  consider- 
able danger.  On  that  day  the 
battle  changed  with  dramatic  swift- 
ness. 1  he  Allies  assumed  a  vigor- 
ous offensive  at  the  very  point  at 
which  the  German  General  had 
supposed  them  not  to  be  strong 
enough  to  make  his  southern  ad- 
vance dangerous. 

"Here  the  British  were  in  great 
strength,  and  for  the  first  time  in 
the  war,  on  anything  like  a  large 
scale,  they  showed  the  Germans 
what  a  British  frontal  attack  was 
like.  'They  shelled  us  with  their 
big  guns,'  said  a  Frenchman  who 
took  part  with  the  French  force 
aiding  the  British,  'but  the  fire  was 
not  very  effective,  and  then  we 
moved  forward.  It  was  a  sight  to 
see.  There  was  almost  too  much 
"elan"  at  times  in  our  moves  for- 
ward, and  some  severe  losses  were 
experienced  at  times,  I  noticed,  by 
the  troops  neglecting  to  make 
trenches  and  contenting  themselves 
with  what  proved  to  be  ineffective 
cover.  But  nothing  could  stay  the 
steady  advance. 

"'At  one  little  village  we  got 
right  home  with  the  bayonet,  and 
we  could  see  that  we  were  driving 
dead-tired  men  in  front  of  us.  At 
times,  however,  they  rallied  with 
an  effort. 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


63 


" 'Beyond 
the  village  tlie\ 
had  mad  e 
trenches,  and 
it  required  a 
costly  charge 
to  clear  them 
out.  We  had 
to  advance over 
barbed  wire, 
and  as  we  did 
so  it  was  ter- 
rible to  see  how 
one's  comrades 
fell.  We 
reached  the 
trenches  and 
c'eared  them. 
Then  came  ten 
minutes  or  so 
of  unopposed 
advance,  and 
then  another  fusillade,  followed  by 
a  quarter  of  an  hour  of  unceasing 
slaughter. 

"'On  again,  but  that's  where  I 
got  shot  in  my  foot.  We  kept 
straight  on,  I  know.'" 

Tn  ultimate  history  it  is  not  im- 
probable that  the  fame  of  Von 
Kluck  will  rest  quite  as  securely  on 
his  successful  retreat  from  the 
Marne  as  upon  his  almost  unop- 
nosed  march  upon  Pans.  The 
former  was  by  far  the  more  difficult 
test  of  his  generalship.  Caught  be- 
tween the  hammer  and  anvil,  out- 
numbered, with  the  morale  of  his 
arm\  sorely  suffering  b\  the  sudden 
transition  from  enthusiastic  ad- 
vance to  precipitate  retreat,  he  yet 
saved  his  army  from  the  destruction 
which  for  a  time  seemed  imminent. 
It  was  demonstrated  in  this  letreat 
that  the  German  soldier  is  not  at 
his  best  in  rear-guard  fighting.  Ad- 
vancing he  comes  on  in  dense  col- 
umns, heedless  of  the  execution 
done  by  artillery  to  which  so  solid 
a  formation  affords  the  best  possible 
target,  singing  his  war  songs  and 
pressing  on  irresistibly.  But  in  re- 
treat he  is  more  inclined  to  straggle, 
and  the  forlorn  fighting  of  the  rear 
guard  seems  not  to  accord  with 
the  Teutonic  temperament. 


A  Bavarian  corps  passing  the  uld  Hirciiles 


tain  at  Augsburg,  Cjermany 


Wounded  but  still  tiring 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


What  a  Zeppelin  bomb  did  in  Antwerp 


CHRONOLOGY  OF  EVENTS  TREATED  IN  CHAPTER  H 


August  4.     Germans  attack  Li'f;e,  and  cross  the  French  bor- 
dernear  Mars-la-Toiir. 

August  7.     Germans  enter  Lit-i;e,  leaving  some  f  irts  in  Pcl"i:in 

possession. 
August  8.     British   expeditionary   force   lands   on   Continent. 

French  take  Miilhausen,  after  battle  at  Altrich. 
August  9.     Germans  retreat  in  Alsace. 
August  II.     German    victory    at    Liege    complete.     Ir^.': 

forced  back  in  ."Msace.     Germans  pushing  into  Frr..nc=  b:- 

tween  Verdun  and  Longwy. 
August  12.     Germans  move  on  Brussels. 

August  13.     Battles  at  Diest,   Haelen,   and   Egbeeze  in   Bel- 
gium.    Stories  of  German  atrocities  in  Belgium  first  become 

current. 
August  i;.     Armies  of  Germany  and  .'Mlies  face  each  other  on 

248  mile  battlcfront. 
August  16.      Battle  at  Dinant.      French  take  the  offensive  at 

Luneville. 
August  17.     Belgian  government  moves  to  Antv.erp. 
August  20.     Germans  enter  Brussels. 
August  21.     (iermans  capture   Ghent   and   begin    assault   on 

Namur. 
August  22.     Battle   alon';   iwen:    -   lile    fronr    near   C'harleroi 

begun.     English    and    Germans    tight   on    historic    field    of 

Waterloo. 
August  23.     Beginningof  battle  of  Mons. 
August  24.     British    retreat   from   Mons   beginning   Sir  John 

French's  prolonged  and  skillful  retreat  upon  I'aris. 
August  25.     (jermans   capture  five  Nami'.    forts  and  pursue 

(•rench  to  the  southward. 


August  27.  Germans  push  ,'\llies  back,  take  Malines,  am' 
Paris  prepares  for  a  siege. 

August  28.     Germans  sack  and  burn  Louvain. 

August  29.  German  force  withdrawn  from  Belgium  to  meet 
Russians.     Germans  march  on  La  Fere. 

August  30.     German  advance  upon  Pari.s  uninterrupted. 

September  2.     French  move  their  capital  to  Bordeaux. 

September  3.  Germans  take  La  Fere  and  .'\miens  and  move  to 
attack  Laon  and  Rheims.  Invaders  now  twenty-five  miles 
from  Paris. 

September  4.  Germans  suddenly  abandon  Paris  drive  and 
move  eastward.  Right  wing  under  Von  Kluck  driven  back 
by  French  under  General  Gallieni,  commandant  of  Paris, 
and  British  under  Sir  John  French: 

September  5.  Germans  take  Rheims  and  three  forts  at  Mau- 
beuge.  Belgians  flood  country  around  Malines  and  trap 
Germans. 

September  7.  Allies  drive  Germans  back  in  160  mile  battle 
from  Nanteuil  to  Verdun.     Paris  saved. 

September  8.  British  and  French  win  great  battle  on  the 
Marne  and  the  Ourcq. 

September  9.  British  cross  the  Marne,  Germans  steadily 
retreating. 

September  10.  British  and  French  pursuing  Germans.  Gen- 
eral von  Stein  admits  defeat.  Belgians  renew  activities, 
retaking  Termonde,  Aerschot,  and  Diest. 

September  14.  Amiens  and  Rheims  reoccupied  by  the 
French.  Germans  after  seven  days'  steady  retreat  establish 
themselves  on  heights  along  the  .Aisnc  and  await  battle. 


66 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


CHAPTER     III 


BATTLE     OF     THE     AISNE ON     THE     FIGHTING     LINES — THE 

CRIME  AT  RHEIMS THE  FALL  OF  ANTWERP THE   BELGIANS* 

LAST  STAND — FIGHTING  IN  FLANDERS YPRES  AND  THE  YSER 


SCriD  e( 


as  lasting  twenty-two 
days,  or  from  the  12th 
of  September  to  Octo- 
ber 4,  1914.  But  the 
name  of  the  battle  and 
its  duration  are  alike 
fixed  arbitrarily.  It 
was  quite  as  much  the 
Battle  of  the  Somme 
or  the  Oise,  for  it  raged 
along  the  banks  of  both 
of  these  rivers  as  well 
as  in  territory  far  re- 
moved from  all  three. 


its  plan  may  be  roughly  determined  by  a 
study    of    the    map    on    page    70.  This 

shows  the  line  of  the  two  belligerents  con- 
fronting each  other  and  extendmg  across 
Prance  to  the  southeast  with  Rheims  at  the 
centre.  The  Germans  once  across  the  Aisne 
and  on  the  heights  back  of  Rheims  had  speed- 
ily dug  themselves  in  and  made  their  position 
what  may  properly  be  called  impregnable,  as 
despite  continuous  fighting  thev  still  main- 
tained themselves  in  that  position  as  late  as 
August,  1916.  All  along  this  line  the  fighting 
was  constant.  The  Franco-British  attack 
took  the  form  of  the  extension  of  their  lines 
to  the  northwest  as  shown  by  the  arrowhead 
at  the  end  of  the  allied  line  on  the  map.  At 
this  time  the  Allies  outnumbered  the  Germans 
heavily.  When  General  French  found  on 
September  12th  that  he  was  no  longer  pursu- 
ing a  retreating  army,  but  face  to  face  with 
the    Germans,    halted    and    awaiting    attack 


A  Belgian  sentry 

As  for  duration  it  might 
alrnost  be  said  to  have 
continued  for  eighteen 
months  or  more  for  it 
merged  insensibly  into 
the -fighting  in  Flanders, 
and  the  names  of  the  prin- 
cipal towns  and  cities 
which  occur  in  the  story 
of  jhe  Battle  of  the  Aisne 
were  still  in  the  day's 
news  th"at  told  of  the 
allied  drive  in  midsum- 
mer of 1916. 

As  a  detached  battle, 
therefore,  the  Battle  of 
the  Aisne  was  practically 
inconclusive.     In   a  way 


Belgian  recruits  parade  London  streets 
67 


68 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Searching  loi  wouruui)  ii_\-  nr^iii.      1  lie  Kud  Lioss  Corps  sees 
batants,  since  its  members  go  on  the  firing  hne 


recognized 


behind  heavy  intienchments,  he 
the  necessity  for  a  change  in  tactics  from  any 
further  direct  frontal  attack.  His  first  task 
was  to  get  his  troops  across  the  Aisne.  This 
was  done  by  both  British  and  French  on  pon- 
toon bridges,  constructed  underheavy  fire,  and 
in  his  report  General  Frencii  compliments  one 


regiment  for  hav- 
ing crossed  the 
river  "in  single 
file  under  consid- 
erable shell  fire, 
by  means  of  a 
broken  girder  of  a 
bridge  which  was 
not  entirely  sub- 
merged." When 
beyond  the  river, 
the  allied  forces 
found  themselves 
on   a   level  plain, 


receded  from  the 
river  to  a  line  of 
hills,  the  crests  of 
w  h  i  c  h  w  ere 
ctowned  by  Ger- 
man artillery  on 
prepared  em- 
placements, v/hile 
on  the  rising 
slopes  were  lines 
of  German  rifle 
pits.  Nor  were  the 
assadants  permit- 
ted to  prepare  in 
security  for  their 
attack  on  this 
strong  position. 
Twice  the  Ger- 
mans poured  out 
of  their  trenches 
and  in  solid  col- 
umns late  at  night 
rushed  on  the 
French  and  Eng- 
lish in  vain  efforts 
to  dislodge  them 
from  the  foothold 
they  had  won. 
There  was  fight- 
ingforweeks  back 
and  forth  overthe 
Plateau  of  Cra~ 
onne.  Now  the 
charging  line  sung 
the  "Marseillaise,"  or  "Tipperary,"  and  then 
the  German  cries  for  Deutschland  rung  out 
over  the  same  blood-stained  plain.  I  iiere  were 
\illages  occupied  twice  in  a  week  by  each  of 
the  warring  hosts,  villages  in  which  the  fight- 
ing was  hand  to  hand  in  the  streets,  and  on 
which,  though  within  easy  range,  neither  side 


ahiiost  as  much  fighting  as  the  corn- 
to  assist  the  wounded 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


dared  to  turn  its 
artillery  for  far 
of  killing  its  o\\  n 
men.  Rheimswas 
held  in  turn  by 
both  enemies  and 
finally  b  «  m  - 
barded  by  tlu- 
Germans  with  re- 
sults that  shocked 
the  art-loving 
world — but  of 
that  more  here- 
after. A  condi- 
tion of  war  which 
afterward  became 
CO  m  mo  n  p  lace 
enough,  but 
which  at  the  time 
seemed  to  all  the 
world  unprece 
dented  for  its 
cold-blooded  bru- 
tality, shocked 
the  American 
journalist, IrvinS. 
Cobb,  into  writ- 
ing this  ghastly 
description: 

"As  I  recall 
now  we  had  come 
through  the  gate 
of  the  school- 
house  to  where 
the  automobiles 
stood  when  a  puff 
of  wind,  blowing 
to  us  from  the 
left,  which  meant 
from  across  the 
battlefront, 
brought  to  our 
noses  a  certain 
smell  which  we  all 
knew  full  well. 

"'^ou  get  it,  I 
see,'  said  the  Ger- 
man  officer    who 

stood      alongside  , 

me.  'It  comes  from  three  miles  off,  but  you 
can  get  it  five  miles  distant  when  the  wind  is 
strong.  That' — and  he  waved  his  left  arm 
toward  it  as  though  the  stench  had  been  a 
visible  thing — 'that  explains  why  tobacco  is 
so  scarce  with  us  among  the  staff  back  yon- 
der in  Laon.      All  the  tobacco  which  can.be 


Belgians  in  their  rifle  pits. 


Note  the  complete  cover  secured  by  bridging  the  openings  made  for  the 
guns 


spared  is  sent  to  the  men  in  the  front 
trenches.  As  long  as  they  smoke  and  keep 
on  smoking  they  can  stand — that! 

""lou  see,'  he  went  on  painstakingly, 
'the  situation  out  there  at  Cernv  is  like  this: 
The  French  and  English,  but  mainly  the 
English,   held    the   ground   first.      A'e  drove 


70 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


71 


Eni;lish  sportsmen's  battalion  on  the  march.  Ciitai  liiiuin  lias  a  unique  regiment  ni  lier  new  arm> ,  niadc  up  exclusively 
of  sportsmen,  including  polo  players,  huntsmen,  football  stars,  amateur  boxers,  big  game  hunters,  and  devotees  of  all  sorts  of 
athletic  recreations 


them  back  and  they  lost  very  heavily  — a  stretch  four  miles 
In  places  their  trenches  were  actually  full  wide  that  is  literally  ca 
of  dead  and  dying 
men  when  we  took 
those  trenches. 

"'You  could  have 
buried  them  merely 
b\-  filling  up  the 
trenches  with  earth. 
And  that  old  beet- 
sugar  factor\-  which 
you  saw  this  noon 
when  we  were  at 
General  von  Zwehl's 
headquarters — it  was 
crowded  with  badly 
wounded  Englishmen. 

"  'At  once  they  ral- 
lied and  forced  us 
back,  and  now  it  was 
our  turn  to  lose 
heavily.  That  was 
nearly  three  weeks 
ago,  and  since  then 
the  ground  over  which 
we  fought  has  been 
debatable  ground,  ly- 
mg  between  our  lines  General  Sir  Horace  Smith-Dorricn,  credited  with  having  saved 
and  the  enemy's  lines  the  British  left  wing 


long  and  half  a  mile 
rpeted  with  bodies  of 
dead  men.  They 
weren't  all  dead  at 
first.  For  two  days 
and  nights  our  men 
in  the  earthworks 
heard  the  cries  of 
those  who  still  lived, 
and  the  sound  of 
them  almost  drove 
them  mad.  There 
was  no  reaching  the 
wounded,  though, 
either  from  our  fines 
or  from  the  Allies' 
lines.  Those  who 
tried  to  reach  them 
were  t  h  e  m  s  e  1  v  e  s 
killed.  Now  there 
are  only  dead  out 
there — thousands  of 
dead,  I  think.  And 
they  have  been  there 
twenty  days.  Once  in 
a  while  a  shell  strikes 
that  old  sugar  mill  or 
falls  into  one  of  those 
trenches.        Then  — 


72 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


a 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


73 


Defenders  nf  Aiunm  i  n  1i.ii,i--iml' 

well,  then,  it  is  worse 
for  those  who  serve  in 
the  front  lines.' 

"'But  in  the  name 
of  God,  man,'  I  said, 
'why  don't  they  call  a 
truce — both  sides  — 
and  put  that  horror 
underground  ?' 

"He  shrugged  his 
shoulders. 

'"War  is  different 
now,'  he  said .  '  Truces 
are  not  the  fashion.'" 

Despairing  of  fur- 
ther progress  in  the 
face  of  the  sturdy  re- 
sistance of  the  Ger- 
mans, Sir  John  French 
left  the  fighting  at  that 
point    to    the    French. 


I  H-rmans.      Belgian  intanri  \  tirin;;  trom  hastily  constructed  trenches,  during  the  investment 
of  Antwerp 


Hospital  wrecked  by  the  German  invaders. 


CoTtyrieht  by  American  Press  Association 

Patients  fled  to  the  open  fields 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


"  '     ""  Lo;'\n.^lH  t'\    Aiii-ri^.iiJ    I'l  ..ss  As-,.  ■■  ,,,tii.II 

French  artillery  in  action,  the  gunners  trying  to  protect  their  ear-drums  from  the  shock.  During  Von  Kluck's  great  drive  on 
Paris,  the  French  artillery  did  wonderful  service  in  holding  the.r  ground  to  the  last  poss.ble  moment  then  retreatmg  and  takmg 
up  another  defensive  position 

and  began  reaching  around  the  Gerrnan 
right  flank  with  the  purpose  of  cutting 
Von  Kluck's  communications.  Had  the 
effort  succeeded  there  would  have  been 
a  fair  chance  of  destroying  at  least  Von 
Kluck's  army,  but  the  Germans  met  the 
menace  in  two  ways.  As  fast  as  General 
French   advanced   Von   Kluck  extended   his 


French  iiil.uur>  .n\.iituig  the 


right  swinging  it  back  and  northward  until 
it  formed  almost  a  right  angle  with  the  mam 
line  of  the  German  armies.     But  this  strategy 
itself  endangered  the  German  line.     If  Ger- 
man troops  were  continually  rushed  to  the 
right  their  line  would  have  been  weakened  at 
the  centre,  and  might  have  been  pierced  by  a 
determined  attack  by  the  French.     Accord- 
ingly the  Germans  attacked    hrst, 
trying  to  drive  the   French  out  of 
Rheims,  and  also  to  pierce  the  allied 
lines  near  the  Argonne  Forest.    Had 
this   been    effected    Verdun   would 
have  fallen,  and  the  quickest  path- 
way   from    Germany    into    France 
which  that  fortress  barred  for  the 
early  years  of  the  war  would  have 
been  opened.     The  long,  circuitous 
route    through    Belgium   which   re- 
quired more  than   150,000  men  to 
guard   could   then    be    abandoned. 
But  although  the  Crown  Prince  and 
General  von  Heeringen  united  in  a 
drive  against  the  French  lines  they 
were   beaten    back.     Virtually    all 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


^5 


Siege  guns  in  action  under  cover  of  a  forest.     This  picture  shows  two  heavy  German  mortars  firing  on  the  French.     The  gims 
are  elevated  at  a  high  angle  so  that  the  heavy  projectiles  fall  almost  vertically  on  the  enemv's  forts 


the  operations  conducted  by  either  side 
which  we  sum  up  under  the  name  of  the 
Battle  of  the  Aisne  resulted  in  failure,  and  the 
end  of  the  grand  strategy  was  but  a  drawn 
battle.  For  months  the  long  curved  line 
across  France  remained  so  little  changed  that 
it  is  almost  impossible  to  depict  the  different 
positions  on  a  map,  while  a  gain  of  a  few 
hundred  metres  by  either  side  was  triumph- 
antly   announced    as  a  victorious    advance. 

Only  to  the  westward,  where  Sir 
John  French  was  trying  to  outflank 
\()n  Kluck,  did  the  line  change. 
There,  as  each  belligerent  contin- 
ually extended  his  lines  toward  the 
northwest,  new  territon,-  was  con- 
tinually occupied  until  the  serried 
rows  of  trenches,  bomb  proofs,  and 
wire  entanglements  reachefd  all  the 
way  to  the  sea. 

In  the  course  of  the  fighting  on 
the  centre  of  the  line  there  was  in- 
flicted on  the  Cathedral  at  Rheims 
that  irreparable  damage  which 
awakened  at  once  deep  regret  and 
bitter  resentment  throughout  the 
civilized  world.  The  Germans 
claimed   for   a   time    that    the    de- 


struction wrought  upon  this  historic  and 
beautiful  piece  of  Gothic  architecture,  long 
held  to  be  the  most  perfect  in  Europe,  was 
due  to  accident.  But  when  several  official 
commissions  demonstrated  the  fact  that  this 
was  impossible,  that  the  Cathedral  rising  in 
its  colossal  bulk  in  the  midst  of  the  two  and 
three  story  houses  of  Rheims  was  so  promi- 
nent an  object  that  it  could  not  have  been 
struck  save  by  design,  German   officials   at 


French  prisoners  with  their  morning  soup 


jG 


THE    NATIONS     AT    WAR 


Cop). 


Stone  bridge  destroyed  at  Liege;  new  pontoon  bridge  in  distance 

Berlin  said  that  it  was  the  fault  of  the  French      on  the  tower  of  the  Cathedral  thereby  making 


who   made    Rheims    a    fortress.     Later   they 
claimed  that  the  French  had  mounted  guns 


it  properly  the  subiect  of  artillery  attack. 
Mr.  E.Ashmead  Bartlett,  who  visited  the 

Cathedral  shortly 
after  the  bombard- 
ment, gathered  from 
eye-witnesses  the 
material  for  a  pic- 
turesque account  cf 
the  disaster  which 
he  published  in  Col- 
lier's Weekly,  ^k2x 
commenting  upon 
the  fact  that  th'. 
Cathedral  had  sur- 
vived the  sup  posedl}' 
barbarous  wars  ^t 
the  Middle  A~os 
only  to  be  irrepar- 
ably wrecked  by  ex- 
ponents of  twentieth 
century  culture,  he 
goes  on  to  say : 

Naniiir,  looking  down  upon  the  town  from  the  fortifications  ^-''-"     l^noc 


THE     NAIIONS    AT     WAR 


77 


Copyright  by  International  News  Sen-ice 

Bridge  at  Termonde,  blown  up  to  check  the  German  advance 

answered  by  a  priest,  who,  on  seeing  that  we  of  them  inside  and  hoisted  the  Red  Cross  on 
were  EngHsh,  at  once  allowed  us  to  enter,  the  spire  in  order  to  protect  the  Cathedral, 
The  sacred  father  then  told 
us  in  language  that  was  not 
altogether  priestly,  when 
speaking  of  the  soldiers 
whose  guns  were  stdl  thun- 
dering outside,  of  how  the 
Germans  had  bombarded 
the  Cathedral  for  two  hours 
that  morning,  landuig  over 
fifty  shells  in  its  immediate 
neighborhood,  but,  luckdy, 
the  distance  being  very 
great,  over  eight  kilometres, 
the  solid  stonework  of  the 
building  had  resisted  the 
successive  shocks  of  these 
six-inch  howitzers,  and  how 
it  was  with  that  ancient  and 
priceless  glass  which  had 
suffered  the  most. 

"'Monsieur,  they  respect  c.,,,v.ii:Mi,>  international .Ne»s>e,- 

nothmg.       We  placed  scores  A  bridge  at  Amiens,  repaired  by  the  Germans 


78 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


L-.MJ  lul'/  Uruwn  B.&s. 


Klui 


'  '  Ti  TL    11    w.is  i,h.niLri.J   Ln    (iciuiaii  ilii-ll  hic 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


79 


Ruined  Rheims  as  seen  from  one  of  the  Cathedral  towers 


Copyright  by  International  News  ScniCC 


so 


THE    NAflUNS    AT    WAR 


and  yet  they  fire  at  it 
just  the  same  and  have 
killed  their  own  soldiers. 
Pray  Monsieur  make 
these  facts  known  all 
over  Europe  and  Amer- 
ica.' 

"A  great  wave  of  sun 
shine  lit  up  a  sombre 
picture  of  carnage  and 
suffering  at  the  western 
end,  near  the  main  en 
trance.  Here,  on  piles 
of  straw,  1  a  \"  t  h  e 
wounded  Germans  in  all 
stages  of  suffering.  Then- 
round,  shaven  heads, 
thin  cheeks,  and  bluish- 
gray  uniforms  con- 
trasted   strangely    with 

the  sombre  black  of  the  silent  priests  attend- 
ing them,  while  in  the  background  the  red 
trousers  of  the  French  soldiers  were  just  vis- 
ible on  the  steps  outside.  Most  of  the 
wounded  had  dragged  their  straw  behind  the 
great  Gothic  pillars,  as  if  seeking  shelter 
from  their  own  shells.  The  priest  conducted 
us  to  one  of  the  aisles  beneath  the  window 
where  the  shell  had  entered  that  morning. 
A  great  pool  of  blood  lay  there,  staining  the 
column  just  as  the  blood  cf  Thomas  a  Becket 
must  have  stained  the  altar  of  Canterbury 
seven  centuries  before. 

"  'That,  Monsieur,  is  the  blood  of  the  French 


A  military  blufF.     With  a  winu  barrtl  and  an  old  cart  the  Germans  constructed 
what,  at  a  distance,  looked  like  a  mortar 


nch  hi.ld-[;i!n 

gendarme  who  was  killed  at  eleven  thi."^ 
morning.  But  he  did  not  go  alone.'  The 
priest  pointed  to  two  more  recumbent  figures, 
clad  in  the  bluish  gray  of  the  Kaiser's  legions. 
There  they  lay  stiff  and  cold  as  the  effigies 
around  them.  All  three  had  perished  by  the 
same  shell.  Civilian  doctors  of  Rheims 
moved  among  the  wounded,  who  for  the 
most  part  maintained  an  attitude  of  stoical 
indifference  to  everything  around  them. 
Food  is  scarce  in  the  town,  and  meat  almost 
unobtainable,  but  in  the  centre  of  the  Cathe- 
dral transept  lay  the  raw  quarter  of  a  slaugh- 
tered ox,  a  horrid  touch  of  materialism  amidst 
a  scene  otherwise  lacking  all 
sense  of  reality.  We  moved 
around  collecting  fragments  of 
the  precious  glass  which  the 
Kaiser  had  so  unexpectedly 
thrown  within  our  reach.  We 
were  brought  back  to  realities  by 
hearing  the  unmistakable  whistle 
of  an  approaching  shell,  followed 
by  a  deatening  explosion,  and 
more  fragments  cf  glass  came 
tumbling  from  abft.  The  weary, 
war-worn  Teutons  instinctively 
hutk'lci  closer  to  the  Gothic 
arches. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  in 
the  fierce  eagerness  of  the  Ger- 
mans to  reach  P  ranee  they  swept 
by  Antwerp  without  stopping  to 
take  it.  Now,  balked  of  their 
prize,  Paris,  and  driven  back, 
their  attention  was  turned  again 


THE     NATIONS    AT     WAR 


toward  this  considerable 
the  strategic  position  of  which 
that  Napoleon  once  said  of  it, 


seaport, 
is  such 
"Ant- 


Teaching  "Tommy  Atkins"  to  use  the 
hayonet 


werp  is  a  pistol  aimed  at  England's  heart." 
Now  the  extension  of  the  German  line  to 
meet  Sir  John  French's  flanking  movement 
impelled  Von  Kluck  to  undertake  the  capture 
of  the  city.  It  was  a  constant 
menace  in  Belgian  hands  to  his 
flank  and  rear.  As  a  fortress  it  was 
second  only  to  Paris.  Its  harbor, 
the  River  Scheldt,  opened 
to  the  sea.  Holland  con- 
trolled the  river's  mouth  so 
that  only  respect  for  the 
neutrality  of  that  nation — 
to  which  the  Germans  could  ,'. 
hardly  appeal  after  their 
treatment  of  Belgium — 
stood  in  the  way  of  Ant- 
werp's being  continual!} 
supplied  with  fresh  troops 
and  munitions  of  war  hv 
the  British.  Moreover,  ir 
required  150,000  troops  to 
invest  it,  and  these  men  \  on 
Kluck  needed  sorely  on  his 
battleline.    They  could  only  ■ 

be  relieved  by  making  Ant- 
werp a  German  possession, 
and  accordingly  on  the  29th  of  Sep 
tember,    while    the    Battle   of  the 
Aisne  was  being  fought  bitterly  all 
the    way    from    Verdun    to    Arras, 
the  attack  was  made. 


Antwerp  was  surrounded  by  a  ring  of  forts 
at  a  distance  of  about  twelve  miles  from  the 
city.  Ihey  were  of  the  sort  deemed  impreg- 
nable before  this  war,  but  withstood 
the  tire  of  the  great  German  guns 
called  "Busy  Berthas,"  after  the 
daughter  of  Herr  Krupp,  only  three 
days.  It  woukl  have  been  wise  had 
the  authorities  of  Antwerp,  when  the 
first  fort  fell,  imitated  the  prudent 
course  of  tiie  burgomaster  of  Brussels 
and  made  prompt  surrender  to  the 
German  invaders.  Por  there  was  no 
adequate  force  present  to  defend  the 
city.  The  Belgian  army  had  already 
been  so  badly  cut  to  pieces  that  a 
scant  twenty  thousand  garrisoned  the 
town  and  its  defences.  A  foolish  relief 
e.xpedition  of  about  8,000  British 
marines  and  blue  jackets  was  sent  to 
the  city,  but  about  2,000  were  disabled  by 
the  enemy's  fire  and  as  many  forced  over  the 
line  into  Holland,  where  in  accordance  with 
international  law  they  were  disarmed  and 
interned  for  the  period  of  the  war.  Indeed 
their  mission  proved  more  harmful  than 
helpful,  for  they  enraged  the  Germans  and 


Boys  play  only  one  game  in  England  now 


82 

General  Pau,  the 
one-armed  veteran  of 
the  French  army 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


fying.  That  flight  of  a  whole  people  was 
strikingly  described  by  E.  Alexander  Powell, 
a  British  correspondent  in  Scribner's  Maga- 
zine, from  which  the  following  account  is 
taken: 

"No  one  who  witnessed  the  flight  from 
Antwerp  will  ever  be  able  to  erase  it  from 
liis  memory.     No  words  can  describe  its 
pathos,  its  miseries,  and  its  horrors.     It 
was  not  a  flight;  it  was  a  stampede.     The 
sober,  slow-thinking,  slow-moving  Flemish 
townspeople  were  suddenly  transformed 
into  a  herd  of  terror-stricken  cattle.     So 
complete    was    the    German     enveloping 
movement  that  only  three  avenues  of  es- 
cape  remained   open:  westward,  by  the 
St.  Nicholas-Lokeren  Road,  to  Ghent  and 
Bruges;  northeastward  into  Holland,  and 
down  the  Scheldt  toward   Flushing.     Of 
the  four  hundred  thousand  fugitives — for  the 
exodus  was  not  confined  to  the  people  of  Ant- 
werp, but  included  the  entire  population  of 
the    countryside    for    thirty    miles    around — 
probably  a"  quarter  of  a  million  escaped  by 
river.     Everything     that     could     float     was 


caused  a  bombardment  of  the  city  for  which, 
but   for    their    presence,  there    would    have 
been    no   excuse.     The   bombardment,   how- 
ever,   was    conducted    more    as    an    object 
lesson    than    with    intent    to    destroy.     The 
artillerists  avoided  hitting  historical  edifices 
or  great  public  buildings  with  such  complete 
success  as  to  entirely  discredit  the  plea  that 
in  the  case  of  the  Cathedral  at  Rheims  the 
destruction  had  been  due  to  accident.     While 
the    bombardment    lasted    about    thirty-six 
hours  it  resulted  only  in  the  destruction  of 
certain  limited  quarters  in  the  town,  and  the 
loss    of   life    was    not    serious.      The    panic, 
however,  caused  by  it  and  by  the  rapid  and 
successful   capture    or   passage   of  the    forts 
by  the  German  storming  parties  was  tern- 


Sir    Douglas    Haig 


nch — with 


King  Ijeorge 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


pressed     into    service:    merchant    steamers, 
dredgers,    ferry-boats,    barges,    canal-boats, 
tugs,    fishing-smacks,    yachts,    scows,    row- 
boats,    launches,    even    extemporized    rafts. 
There  was  no  attempt  at  maintaining  disci- 
pline or  order.     The  fear-frantic  people  piled 
aboard   until   there  was  not  even   standing- 
room   upon   the   vessels'   decks.     They  were 
as  packed  with  humanity  as  are  the  New 
\'ork  subway  trains  on  a  Saturday  noon. 
Of  all  the  thousands  who  fled  by  river  but 
an   insignificant   proportion   were  supplied 
with  food,  or  with  warm  clothing,  or  had 
space  in  which  to  lie  down.     Yet  through 
two  nights  and  two  days  they  huddled  to- 
gether on  the  open  decks,  while   the  great 
guns  tore  to  pieces  the  city  they  had  left  be- 
hind them.     As  my  launch  threaded  its  way 
up  the  crowded   river  after  the  first  night's 
bombardment,  we  seemed  to  pass  through  a 
wave  of  sound — a  great  moan  of  mingled  an- 
guish and  misery  and  fatigue  and  hunger  from 
the  homeless  thousands  adrift  upon  the  waters. 
"The  scenes   along  the   highways  leading 


83 

Field  Marshal  of  the 
British  Army,  Kitch- 
ener of  Khartoum 


Enlisted  to  fight  England;  now  fighting  for  her.     Ulster  vol- 
unteers being  inspected  bv  Sir  Edward  Carson 


toward  Ghent  and  to  the  Dutch  frontier  were 
even  more  appalhng,  for  here  the  soldiers  of 
the  retreating  field  army  and  the  fugitive 
civilians  were  mixed  in  inextricable  confusion. 
Hy  mid-afternoon  on  Wednesday  the  main 
highwav  from  Antwerp  to  Ghent  was  jammed 
from  ditch  to  ditch  with  a  solid  stream  of 
hastening  humanity,  and  the  same  was  true  of 
eveiy  road,  every  lane,  every  foot-path  lead- 
ing away  from  the  advancing  Germans. 

"I  doubt  if  the  w'orld  has  ever  seen  so 
pathetic,  so  heart-breaking,  so  terrible  a  pro- 
cession. It  seemed  as  though  no  wheeled 
vehicle  had  been  left  in  Antwerp.  There 
were  people  in  motor  cars,  with  others  stand- 
ing on  the  running-boards  and  clinging  to  the 
hoods  and  mud-guards;  there  were  people  in 


84 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


THE     NA'I'IONS     AT    WAR 


carriages,  in  delivery  wagons,  in  moving-vans, 
in  farm-carts,  in  omnibuses,  in  carts  drawn  by 
dogs,  on  bicycles,  on  horseback,  and  thousands 
upon  tens  of  thousands  in  the  frantic  throng 
afoot.  I  saw  men  pushing  their  wives  and 
children  in  wheelbarrows  piled  high  with 
bedding.  I  saw  sturdy  young  peasants 
carrying  their  aged  parents  in  their  arms. 
I  saw  monks  in  woollen 
robes  and  sandals  bear- 
ing wounded  men  on 
stretchers.  I  saw 
white-faced  nuns  urg- 
ing forward  groups  ot 
war-orphaned  children 
who  had  been  confided 
to  their  care.  I  saw 
mothers,  so  weak  and 
ill  that  they  could 
scarcely  totter  for- 
ward, with  week-old 
babies  in  their  arms.  I 
saw  priests  assisting 
the  feeble  and  the 
wounded.  I  saw  women 
of  fashion,  in  fur  coats 
and  high-heeled  shoes, 
staggering  under  the 
weight  ot  the  belong- 
ings they  were  carrying 
in  sheet -wrapped 
bundles  upon  their 
backs.  I  saw  white- 
haired  men  and  women 
grasping  the  harness  of 
tile  gun-teams  or  the 
stirrup-leathers  of  the 
troopers  who.  them- 
selves exhausted  from 
days  of  fighting,  slept 
in  their  saddles  as  they 
rode.  I  saw  springless 
farm-wagons  filled 
with  wounded  sol- 
diers, with  bandaged 
heads  and  arms,  and 
with  piteous  white  faces,  and  through  the 
straw  beneath  rlu-m  the  blood  dripped 
dripped      .  dripjied,     lea\ing 

a  crimson  trail  along  the  road. 

"The  confusion  was  be\ ond  all  imagina- 
tion, the  clamor  deafening:  the  rattle  and 
clank  of  batteries,  the  trample  of  hoofs,  the 
cracking  of  whips,  the  throb  of  motor  cars, 
the  curses  of  the  drivers,  the  moans  of  the 
wounded,  the  cries  of  women,  the  whimpering 


Kr. 


!■  lanuiTs. 
locate  the 


of  frightined  children,  threats,  pleadings, 
oaths,  screams,  imprecations — and  the  shuf- 
fle, shuffle  of  countless  feet.  And  the  fields 
and  ditches  between  which  these  processions 
of  disaster  passed  were  strewn  with  the  pros- 
trate forms  of  those  who,  from  sheer  ex- 
haustion, could  go  no  farther.  Within  a 
few  hours  after  the  exodus  began,  the  coun- 
tryside for  miles  around 
was  as  bare  of  food  as 
the  Sahara  is  of  grass. 
By  this  I  do  not  mean 
that  there  was  a 
scarcity  of  food;  I 
mean  that  there  was 
literally  nothing  to 
■at.  Near  Capellen  a 
well-to-do  resident  of 
Antwerp  eagerlv  ex- 
changed his  $5,000 
motor  car  for  food  for 
his  starving  family. 
Time  after  time  I  saw 
the  famished  fugitives 
pause  at  farmhouses 
.md  ofl^^er  all  of  their 
pitifully  few  posses- 
sions for  a  loaf  of 
bread,  and  the  country 
people,  with  tears 
streaming  down  their 
cheeks,  could  only 
shake  their  heads.  I 
saw  prosperous  look- 
ing men  and  smartly 
gowned  women,  and 
wounded  soldiers,  pull 
up  turnips  from  the 
fields,  and  devour  them 
raw — for  there  was 
nothing  else.  It  will 
probably  never  be 
k  n  o  w  n  h  o  w-  m  a  n  y 
people  perished  during 
that  awful  flight  from 
hunger,  exposure,  and 
exhaustion;  man\-  more,  certainly,  than  lost 
their  lives  during  the  bombardment.  Near 
one  small  town  on  the  Dutch  frontier  twenty 
children  were  born  during  the  night,  in  the 
open  fields,  the  mothers  being  without  beds, 
without  shelter,  and  without  medical  at- 
tention." 

Just  at  the  end  the  Belgian  troops  which 
for  hours  had  conducted  their  retreat  through 
the  city  in  good  order  were  thrown  into  jianic. 


1  KTinan    scouts    tO'"iK    to 
encmv  from  a  tree 


86 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


By  some  blunder  the  pontoon  bridge,  the 
sole  means  of  crossing  the  Scheldt,  was  blown 
up.  Thirty  thousand  soldiers  were  still  in 
an.l  about  Antwerp  and  when  these  reached 


An  aerial  duel  witliln  sight  of  Ypres.  A  German  aeroplane,  flying  high  nwr  ^  |ires, 
was  attacked  by  four  British  biplanes,  and  in  spite  of  the  heavy  shrapnel  fire  from  German 
guns  the  British  machines  closed  around  their  quarry  and  forced  it  to  the  ground 


the  river  front  and  found  their  escape  cut  off 
they  lost  all  semblance  of  discipline  or  order. 
Some  commandeered  the  few  vessels  re- 
maining in   the   river,   and   made  their  way 


across  to  safety.  Others  fled  across  the 
country  to  be  captured  by  the  enemy  or  driven 
across  the  line  into  Holland,  there  to  be 
interned  until  the  end  of  the  war.  The  road 
to  Ghent,  the  chief  way 
of  escape,  was  so  packed 
with  soldiers  and  civil- 
ians that  a  correspond- 
ent said  that  to  pro- 
ceed against  that  panic- 
stricken  mob  would  have 
been  as  impossible  as  to 
paddle  a  canoe  up  the 
rapids  at  Niagara.  The 
river  was  as  crowded 
with  vessels,  their  decks 
packed  with  refugees,  as 
Fifth  Avenue  is  with 
vehicles  on  a  pleasant 
afternoon  in  winter.  In 
all  250,000  of  the  400,- 
000  inhabitants  of  Ant- 
werp fled.  The  rest 
were  hiding  in  cellars  or 
in  the  backs  of  their 
houses  when  the  trium- 
phant Germans  marched 
along  the  empty  streets 
to  the  strains  of  their 
military  bands  or  the 
more  exultant  notes  of 
their  own  songs. 

It  was  a  marvelous 
army  that  marched 
through  the  old  Belgian 
town.  It  was  little 
scarred  by  conflict,  for 
the  prize  had  been  taken 
at  but  slender  cost.  Bat- 
tery after  battery  of 
field  artillery  rumbled 
along  the  streets,  and 
eye-witnesses  report  that 
although  these  guns  had 
been  in  action  for 
thirty-six  hours  the 
horses  were  groomed  as 
for  a  parade  and  the  har- 
ness polished  till  it  shone 
again.  Every  regiment 
had  its  band.  The  cav- 
alry was  preceded  by 
rumbling  kettle  drums  and  blaring  trumpets, 
behind  which  followed  the  Uhlans  with  their 
forest  of  lances  and  fluttering  flags,  the  cuiras- 
siers in  helmets  and  breast  plates  of  burnished 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


87 


iteel,  bluejackets  from  the  ships  which  had 
not  yet  dared  to  take  the  sea,  Bavarians  in 
dark  blue,  Saxons  in  pale  blue,  and  Austrians 
in  uniforms  of  silver  gray  made  up  the  trium- 
phal procession  which 
poured  through  abso- 
lutely deserted  streets. 
But  leaving  behind  this 
spectacular  army  the 
main  body  of  the  Ger- 
man troops  pressed 
straight  through  Ant- 
werp in  pursuit  of  the 
thoroughly  discouraged 
Belgian  army.  Of  King 
Albert's  troops  there 
were  hardly  more  than 
50,000  left.  They  had 
every  reason  to  be  dis- 
couraged, disorganized, 
and  demoralized.  Brus- 
sels, their  capital,  had 
fallen,  their  king  and 
government  had  fled 
first  to  Antwerp,  and 
were  now  fugitives  along 
theroadtoOstend.  They 
had  seen  the  speedy  fall 
of  their  greatest  for- 
tresses, Liege  and 
Namur.  They  knew  of 
the  obliteration  of  such 
beautiful  and  pictur- 
escjue  unfortified  towns 
as  Louvain,  Termond, 
and  Malines.  They  had 
been  left  to  bear  the 
burden  of  conflict  prac- 
tically alone,  for  the 
little  aid  rendered  by  the 
handful  of  British  sent  to 
their  assistance  had  been 
more  of  an  irritation  to 
their  enemies  than  a 
help  in  time  of  need. 

Yet  this  disheartened 
army  pulled  itself  to- 
gether and  on  the  banks 
iggish  ^  ser  and 


admirable  system  which  characterizes  their 
nation,  set  to  work  to  restore  Antwerp  to  its 
normal  condition,  ihc  waterworks  cut  by 
shells    were    repaired.     Scientific    sanitation 


Warneford  destroys  a  Zeppelin.  Few  men  have  won  greater  fame  in  this  war  than 
Flight  Sub-Lieutenant  R.  A.  J.  Warneford,  R.  N.,  who  was  given  the  X'ictoria  Cross  for 
destroying  a  Zeppelin  near  Ghent  by  dropping  a  bomb  on  it  from  his  aeroplane.  Warne- 
ford was  killed  a  few  days  later 


of  the  slu^^ 

amidst  the  network  of 
canals    in    Flanders 
fought  desperately  and 
successfully  for  the  retention  of  the  last  bit  of     checked   at  its  ver^'  start  an  epidemic  that 
their  native  soil  left  to  them.  was  threatening  the  city.     The  odor  of  dis- 

While   their   main    army    pursued    the   re-     infectants  supplanted  that  of  powder  smoke, 
treating  Belgians  the  German  staff",  with  the     The  electric  lights,  long  extinguished  for  fear 


88 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


r 


Warching  for  (German; 

of  German  Zeppelins,  blazed  forth  once  more, 
for  Antwerp  was  now  a  German  city.  The 
reopened  post  office  sold  German  stamps,  and 
those  bearing  the  head  of  King  Albert  dis- 
appeared. Surest  sign  of  all  the  German 
word  "Verboten"  stared  at  the  passerby 
almost  as  frequently  as  in  Germany  itself. 
Proclamations  posted  in  every  public  square 
called  upon  the  citizens  to  refrain  from  any 
hostile  act  which  "might  lead  to  the  demoli- 
tion of  your  beautiful 
city." 

Meanwhile  the  main 
German  army  swept  on 
to  the  westward,  parth' 
in  pursuit  of  the  fleeing 
Belgians,  partly  in  order 
to  secure  seaports  on  the 
North  Sea  and  English 
Channel.  The  entrance 
to  Antwerp  was  blocked 
by  the  control  of  the 
Scheldt's  mouth  by  neu- 
tral Holland.  Kiel  and 
Cuxhaven  were  too  far 
from  the  English  coast  to 
serve  as  effective  bases 
for  German  naval  demon- 
strations. Calais  was  the 
port  for  which  the  Ger- 
mans really  yearned.  But 
for  the  moment  they  were 
compelled  to  be  content 
with  Ostend  and  Zee- 
brugge,    the    port    of 


Bruges.  Nei- 
ther of  these 
ever  proved 
serviceable  for 
naval  oper- 
ations, being 
too  shallow. 

Die  fleeing 
Belgian  army, 
now  in  the  very 
southwestern 
corner  of  Bel- 
g 1 u  m ,  had 
come  into 
touch  with  the 
left  wing  of 
the  allied  arm- 
ies which  we 
have  seen  men- 
a  c  i  n  g  Von 
Kluck's  com- 
munications by  extending  northward.  When 
this  junction  was  efi^ected  the  allied  line  ex- 
tended unbroken  from  Nieuport,  on  the  Eng- 
lish Channel,  through  France  to  the  meeting- 
place  of  that  country  with  Germany  and 
Switzerland,  a  distance  of  about  260  miles. 
While  there  was  fighting  all  along  this  line,  it 
became  apparent  early  in  October  that  the 
ambition  of  the  Germans  for  the  capture 
of  Calais  would  cause  the  main  struggle  [to 


This  fieldpiece  was  hit  squarely  on  the  muzzle  by  a  shell.     The  rifling  inside  the  barrel 

ean  he  jilainlv  seen 


rilK     iNATlONS     AT    WAR 


89 


be  in  that  sec- 
tion of  Fiance 
and  l^elgium 
k  n  o  w  n  a  s 
llanders.  So 
j^reat  was  the 
struggle  which 
raged  there  for 
months  that 
it  seems  extra- 
ordinary to 
know  that  the 
territory  af- 
fected was  less 
in  area  than 
the  District  of 
C  o  1  u  m  b  i  a  , 
hardly  greater 
indeed  than 
that  included 
within  the  city 

limits  of  New  York  or  Chicago.  \  et  in 
that  t!ny  corner  of  the  world,  not  a  mere 
battle,  but  practically  a  war  was  fought. 

It  was  a  difficult  country  for  the  operations 
of  armies.  Sand  dunes  bordering  the  cold 
gray  waters  of  the  North  Sea;  sluggish  tidal 
rivers  making  their  way  inland  and  connected 
for  plodding  barges  by  canals  locked  against 
the  rise  and  fall  of  the  tides;  the  country 
ever\nvhere   water-logged    and    at   points    as 


How  a  roail  was  blocktil.     HelKian  trenches  near  (ihcnt 


A  French  outpost,  in  advance  of  the  first  line  trenches 

much  as  nine  feet  below  the  level  of  the  sea, 

protected  by  dykes  which  the  troops  used  first 

for  breastworks,  and   afterward   as  a    refuge 

from    the   angry   waters   when   the    Belgians 

flooded    their    fields    rather    than    surrender 

this  last  bit  of  their  native  land — such  was 

the  topography  of  the  country  in  which  the 

hostile  armies  grappled  early  in  October  after 

the  fall  of  Antwerp,  and  in  which  they  were 

still    battling    when    the    midnight    chimes 

ushered    in    the     Happy 

New  Year  of  191 5.      Ihe 

reflections  of  the  soldiers 

in     the     flooded,    frozen 

trenches  must  have  been 

rather     cynical     at    that 

midnight  hour. 

No  equal  period  of 
time  in  the  world's  his- 
tory, no  such  limited 
space  in  the  globe's  geog- 
raphy ever  witnessed  so 
much  of  the  horrors  of 
war  as  Flanders  during 
that  struggle  in  dreari- 
est winter.  Not  the 
soldiers  alone,  but  hap- 
less civilians  felt  war's 
scourge  in  its  utmost 
savagery.  The  district 
was  densely  populated  by 
a  people  mainly  agricul- 
tural, but  engaged  in 
some  degree  in  small 
home   manufacturing  in- 


ht  by  International  News  Service 


90 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


dustries.  Little  towns  like  Ypres,  Ramscap- 
pelle,  Fumes,  Nieuport,  and  Dixmude,  for 
centuries  the  homes  of  happy  and  thrifty 
people,  possessing  the  quaintness  and  charm 
that  attaches  to  the  Flemish  cities  in  which 
ancient  architecture  has  withstood  the  test 
of  time,  lay  in  the  tract  of  war  and  were 
ruthlessly  blotted  out. 

It  became  clear  early  in  October  that  the 
German  strategy  contemplated  a  drive  down 


How  a  modern  battle  looks. 


This  is  a  picture  of  the  battle  as  viewed  trom  a  housetop 
in   Soissons 


the  coast  of  the  Channel  to  Calais.  About 
250,000  men,  Belgian,  French,  and  British, 
opposed  the  Germans  on  this  part  of  the 
Hne.  The  Belgians,  about  50,000  strong  be- 
ing on  the  extreme  left,  bore  the  shock  of  the 
conflict.  The  fighting  raged  for  weeks  with- 
out material  advantage  to  either  side.  In- 
deed after  two  years  of  the  war  the  opposing 
lines  through  Flanders  were  practically  iden- 
tical with  those  taken  when  the  German  ad- 
vance first  reached  Ostend.  But  nowhere 
and  at  no  time  in  the  history  of  the  war  has 
there  been  more  savage  fighting,  nor  have 
ever  troops  dared  more  or  suffered  more  than 
those  in  the  water-logged  fields  of  Flanders. 


Dunkirk  was  the  first  objective  of  the  Ger- 
mans. After  it  Calais.  The  activities  of 
the  British  monitors,  in  the  Channel,  which 
could  readily  have  been  reenforced  by  num- 
bers of  light-draught  vessels,  made  the  ad- 
vance along  the  coast  hazardous.  Accord- 
ingly at  Westende  the  invading  columns 
turned  inland.  But  at  once  they  encount- 
ered the  River  Yser,  with  canals  extending 
in  all  directions  from  it.  Behind  these  nat- 
ural defences  the  Belgians, 
perhaps  50,000  of  them, 
and  the  French  had  estab- 
lished themselves  in  force. 
Later  a  British  corps,  in- 
cluding several  regiments 
of  East  Indians  from  La- 
hore, came  to  the  aid  of 
these  forces.  It  had  become 
apparent  to  General  Joffre 
and  Sir  John  French  that  in 
this  water-logged  corner  of 
Europe  the  Germans  in- 
tended to  strike  at  their 
enemies  with  all  the  power 
of  their  marvelous  morale, 
superb  equipment,  and 
overwhelming  numbers. 

Five  months  of  fighting 
without  cessation  followed. 
A  bleak,  chill  October 
passed  into  the  bitterness  of 
winter.  The  men  who  had 
long  fought  knee-deep  in 
water  now  stood  with  freez- 
ing feet  upon  sheets  of  ice. 
Day  by  day  news  went  out 
to  the  world  of  trivial  suc- 
cesses or  reverses.  An  ad- 
vance of  ninety  yards  was 
worth  chronicling  in  the 
Villages  were  taken  and  re- 
taken. In  the  same  day's  news  the  same  town 
would  be  noted  as  occupied  by  both  armies, 
which,  paradoxical  as  it  might  seem,  was  true 
as  neither  occupied  more  than  a  small  part  of 
it,  though  destruction  and  death  possessed  it 
all.  Not  for  years  will  the  losses  sustained  by 
the  armies  struggling  for  the  ^'ser  be  known 
— accurately  they  will  never  be  known.  For 
the  first  thirty  days  of  fighting,  however, 
the  total  losses  of  the  Germans  were  esti- 
mated at  120,000  by  one  of  their  high  officials. 
The  French  estimates  were  higher,  while  they 
put  the  losses  of  the  Allies  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  75,000. 


official  reports. 


THE    NATIONS    A'l     WAR 


9i 


The  German  troops  engaged  during  Oc- 
tober and  early  November  numbered  about 
000,000  men,  according  to  French  authori- 
ties. They  were  commanded  at  different 
points  in  the  hne  by  the  Crown  Prince  of 
Bavaria,  General  von  Fabeck,  General  von 
Demling,  and  the  Duke  of  Wurtemberg. 
Animated  by  high  ambition  they  were  still 
further  stimulated  to  daring  by  proclama- 
tions declarmg  it  the  will  of  the  Kaiser  that 
all  Belgian  resistance  be 
stamped  out  before  Novem- 
ber 1st,  m  order  that  on  the 
birthday  of  the  Kaiser  the 
announcement  might  be 
made  to  the  world  of  the  an- 
nexation of  Belgium  to  the 
German  Empire,  the  first 
spod  of  war. 

At  the  outset  this  seemed 
an  ambition  easy  of  attain- 
ment. The  Belgian  army 
fleemg  from  Antwerp  was 
utterly  demoralized.  The 
English  armymovingnorth- 
ward  from  the  Aisne  was  de- 
layed for  lack  of  transporta- 
tion. On  the  coast  and  in 
h  landers  the  chief  French 
force  was  made  up  of  cav- 
alry, territorials  and  drafted 
men  from  the  navy — all 
under  General  Foch,  and 
not  strong  enough  to  inter- 
pose a  sufficient  defence  to 
the  German  assault.  lO 
the  right  of  Foch,  aroumi 
Ldle,  was  General  Maud- 
kin,  and  beyond  his  division 
was  that  of  General  de 
Castelnau  near  Arras. 

As  rapidly  as  possible  th 
trated  in  the  neighborhood  of  Dixmude, 
holding  the  railroad  line,  and  protected  by 
the  river  and  canals  in  their  front,  ikhind 
them  the  I'Jelgians  were  rapidlv  reorganizing. 
Ihe  Germans,  avoiding  for  the  time  a  frontal 
attack,  sought  to  get  around  the  left  flank  of 
the  Allies,  menacing  Dunkirk  and  Calais  and 
cutting  the  British  off^  from  their  base  on  the 
Channel.  In  this  endeaxor  the  antagonists 
fought  in  a  flooded  countr\',  where  trenches 
became  ditches,  and  deep  canals  cut  through 
the  flooded  fields  lured  on  unsuspecting  troops 
to  watery  graves.  The  savagery  of  the  fight- 
ing exceeded  anything  known  in  war.     At  one 


point  a  ferryman's  stone  house,  an  object  of 
attack  alternately  by  both  armies,  was  taken 
and  retaken,  until  the  fields  awash  around  it 
were  filled  with  floating  bodies.  Along  the 
Yser,  at  ^'pres  and  Ramscappelle,  the  armies 
were  in  such  close  contact  that  the  fighting 
was  much  of  the  time  hand-to-hand,  and  in 
the  end  neither  force  had  gained  any  material 
ad\antage. 

All  authorities  agreed  that  the  losses  of  the 


F 


rench  concen- 


Training  English  schoolboys  for  future  officers 

Germans  in  this  fighting  far  exceeded  those  of 
the  Allies  because  of  their  stubborn  adherence 
to  the  attack  en  masse.  They  charged  in 
dense  columns,  eight  abreast,  offering  a  tar- 
get no  artillerist  could  possibh'  miss.  "In 
certain  trenches  120  metres  long,"  says  a 
French  official  report,  "there  have  been  found 
more  than  2,000  corpses.  This  in  spite  of 
the  fact  that  we  know  the  Germans,  whenever 
It  IS  possible  for  them  to  do  so,  remove  their 
dead  from  the  field  of  battle." 

As  a  result  of  three  weeks'  hard  fighting 
along  the  Yser  and  about  Ypres,  the  Belgian 
army  was  buttressed  in  its  final  hold  upon  its 
own  land,  and  the  desire  of  the  Kaiser  to  an- 


THE    NATIONS     AT     WAR 


review 


nex  Belgium  was,  for  the  moment  at  least, 
thwarted.  Dunkirk,  Calais,  and  Boulogne 
were  saved  for  the  AUies.  The  spirit  of  the 
Belgian  troops  was  renewed,  and  that  of  the 
French  and  British  greatly  stimulated  by  the 
decided  check  to  the  German  onrush.  The 
Germans  were  not  driven  back,  however. 
They  dug  themselves  in,  in  Flanders,  as  they 
had  "done  all  across  France,  and  the  year 
closed  without  any  indication  of  the  ability 
of  the  Allies  to  drive  them  out.  Neverthe- 
less the  check  was  essentially  an  allied  vic- 
tory. 

The  territory  over  which  the  hostile  armies 
were  fighting  so  tenaciously  and  savagely  was 
devastated  as  no  land  since  we  began  to  talk 
of  "civilized  warfare"  has  ever  been.  Dix- 
mude,  Ypres,  Ramscappelle— all  beautiful 
towns — were  reduced  to  ruins.  The  destruc- 
tion seems  almost  to  have  been  wanton,  the 
artillerists  hurling  their  shells  upon  historic 
edifices  apparently  for  the  mere  pleasure  of 


remh  trenches 


seeing  them  crumble.  Of  the  18,000  m- 
habitants  of  Ypres,  virtually  all  were  driven 
out— only  the  dead  remained.  The  houses 
that  were  not  destroyed  by  shell-fire  were 
pillaged  and  burned  by  the  German  invaders. 
A  correspondent  visiting  the  city  after  the 
bombardment  had  continued  a  month  de- 
scribes its  appearance  thus: 

"For  a  distance  of  three  hundred  yards 
German  shells  had  ploughed  their  way  through 
parallel  streets,  forming  a  new  ruthless  avenue 
through  the  town  of  Ypres. 

"The  most  terrible  sight  of  all  lay  farther  on. 
The  Cathedral  of  Saint  Martin,  a  magnificent 
edifice  of  the  Fifteenth  Century,  containing 
the  tomb  of  Jansenius,  is  nothing  but  a  mass 
of  ruins.  It  was  dusk  when  we  reached  it. 
"Climbing  a  heap  of  stone  debris,  dis- 
colored by  the  fumes  released  from  shells,  I 
saw  in  the  gloom  of  the  ruined  aisle  a  red  glow 
which  for  a  moment  I  took  to  be  that  of  an 
altar  light.  Clambering  farther  into  the  ruins 
of  the 'church  I  found  this  to  be  nothing  but 
the  still-smoulJcnng  embers  of  the  cathedral. 

"For  while  v»e  were 
still  there  the  Germans, 
heaven  knows  for  what 
reason,  were  busily  en- 
j-aged  in  pouring  in- 
cendiary bombs  upon 
the  already  ruined  city. 
Next  door  to  the  cathed- 
ral stood  the  magnifi- 
cent Market  Hall  of 
Ypres.  It  is  now  liter- 
ally a  heap  of  ruins.  I 
would  wish  the  people 
of  half  a  dozen  cities  in 


THE    NATIONS    AT     WAR 


93 


Some 

lie  textile  district  could  imagine  tluy  pos- 
sessed markets  of  the  artistic  beauty  of  West- 
minster Abbey,  together  with  their  own 
thriving  trade,  and  imagine  the  scene  of  utter 
desolation  and  ruin  which  I  have  endeavored 
to  describe  there  at  Ypres. 

"The  town  has  not  only  been  bombarded 
systematically  with  a  view  to  destruction 
rather  than  mihtary  advantage,  but  it  has 
also  been  sacked  with  all  the  thoroughness  cf 
the  German  system.  It  was  not  only  a  shell; 
i;  is  a  burst  shell.  Its  ven,^  streets  have  been 
destroyed.  In  the  main  road  from  Ypres  one 
of  those  'Jack  Johnson's,'  which  the  French 
troops,  with  the  same  light-heartedness  which 
characterizes  our  own  have  given  the  name  of 
marmites,  or  soup  kettles,  has  made  a  hole  big 
enough  to  contain  a  London  motorbus. 
These  huge  pits  yawn  in  every  road  along  the 
front." 

A  British  official  report,  setting  aside  for 
the  moment  cold  officialism,  described  strik- 
ingly the  conditions  of  life  in  the  trenches 
along  the  Yser: 

"The  condition  of  the 
trenches  became 

wretched  beyond  de- 
scription. From  having 
to  sit  or  stand  in  a  mix- 
ture of  straw  and  iiijuul 
mud,  the  men  had  to 
contend  with  half-frozen 
slush.  Tt  is  an  ill  wind, 
however,'  and  one  good 
point  about  the  wet 
weather  is  that  it  made 
the  ground  so  soft  that 
the  enemy's  howitzer 
shells   sink  some  depth 


Tench  Foreign  Lejiion 


before  they  detonate,  and  expend  a  great 
part  of  their  energy  in  an  upward  direction, 
throwing  the  mud  about. 

"Nevertheless  the  wet  and  cold  have  added 
greatly  to  the  hardships  of  the  troops  in  the 
trenches,  and  the  problem  how  to  enable 
them  to  keep  their  feet  reasonably  dry  and 
warm  now  is  engaging  serious  attention. 

"At  one  place,  owing  to  the  kindness  of  tlie 
proprietor,  certain  works  recently  were  placed 
at  our  disposal  as  a  wholesale  bathhouse, 
lavatory,  and  repair  shop.  In  the  works  are  a 
number  of  vats  large  enough  to  contain 
several  men  at  one  time.  Thev  serve  most 
excellently  for  the  provision  of  hot  baths  for 
the  men  on  relief  from  the  trenches. 

"While  the  men  are  enjoying  their  bath, 
their  clothes  are  taken  away,  their  under- 
clothing washed  or  burned,  and  replaced  bv  a 
new  set.  At  the  same  time  their  uniforms 
are  fumigated,  cleaned  and  re- 
paired and  buttons  sewed  on.  The 
repairs  are  done  by  a  band  of  wo- 
men who  are  employed  for  the  pur- 


Sod  (lint 


itations  are  covered  with  soj 
uirnien  Irurn  iocann^  rhem 


enemy 


94 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


pose.     By  this  installation  some   1,500  men 
are  catered  to  in  every  way." 

Digging  in,  shivering  day  and  night  in  the 
trenches,  killing  now  and  then  with  a  rifle 
shot  some  other  poor  fellow  quite  as  weary  of 
the  war  as  his  killer,  dodging  bombs  or  throw- 
ing them,  starving,  hopelessly  and  endlessly 
pursuing  vermin,  going  unwashed  and  often 
unfed — so  both  Allies  and  Germans  spent  the 
v/inter  months  with  practically  no  advantage 


through  the  mountains  that  the  Germans  had 

taken  early  in  the  war  were  slowly  regained. 
Instead  of  the  German  capture  of  Verdun, 
which  had  so  long  been  expected,  the  news 
came  daily  of  French  successes  near  St. 
Mihiel  and  St.  Die.  The  former  of  these 
positions,  marking  the  extreme  German  ad- 
vance into  France  along  that  line,  was  the 
scene  of  constant  fighting.  Could  the  French 
but  break  through  at  that  point,  they  would 


1  lirce  blind  sul Jicrs  ,it  St.  Dunctan's  \  ilia,  a  maKniticcnt  London  property  given  by  Otto  Kahn,  an  American  banker,  for  a  home 

for  blmded  soldiers  and  sailors 


won  or  lost.  December  passed;  1914  gave 
way  to  191 5;  and  still  the  Germans  clung  to 
the  soil  they  had  won,  still  the  French  and 
English  barred  their  way  to  any  further  con- 
quest. But  the  Allies  were  steadily  growing 
stronger  while  the  needs  of  Von  Hindenberg 
in  the  west,  where  the  fighting  was  again 
savage,  compelled  the  sending  thither  of 
heavy  reenforcements  from  France  and  Bel- 
gium. 

As  a  result  of  this  the  French  pushed  their 
way  ahead  in  Alsace,  and  on  the  right  of  their 
line     became     the     aggressors.      The     roads 


cut  the  German  communications  with  Metz, 
and  put  the  entire  Army  of  the  Crown  Prince 
in  jeopardy.  But  week  after  week  the  pound- 
ing went  on  without  serious  result.  The  line 
of  the  Meuse  still  held  practically  as  the  limit 
of  the  Germans'  advance  though  at  one  to  two 
points  they  had  indeed  crossed  the  river. 

Verdun  alone  among  the  fortresses  of 
France  gave  that  example  of  stubborn  de- 
fiance and  protracted  resistance  which  had 
been  expected  of  the  forts  at  Lille  and  Namur. 
And  it  indeed  was  protected  rather  than  a 
protector,  for,  seeing  the  impotence  of  their 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


95 


Louvain,  city  of  learning,  the  Oxford  of  Belgium,  wrecked  by  war 


Louvain  laid  waste.     Curiously  enough,  statues  in  the  streets  were  seldom  injured 


96 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


forts  before  the  heavy  new  German  artillery, 
the  French  determined  to  defend  Verdun  from 
without  rather  than  within,  and  threw  for- 
ward their  trenches  with  infantry  defenders 
to  such  a  point  that  the  Germans  were  never 
near  enough  to  the  fortress  to  bring  their 
heaviest  artillery  to  bear  The  lines  of 
hostile  trenches  approached  each  other  so 
closely  that  the  soldiers  shouted  messages 
across  the  field,  and  patching  up  temporary 
truces  went  amicably  together  down  to  the 


the  towns  within  twenty  miles  of  the  frontier, 
setting  up  their  own  governments  and  courts. 
They  say  that  when  the  first  crier  opened  the 
court  "in  the  name  of  the  French  people,"  old 
men  who  had  been  annexed  with  the  country 
by  Germany  in  1871  burst  into  tears  and  the 
young  people  ran  about  the  streets  waving  the 
tricolor. 

By  the  end  of  the  year  the  French  had 
possession  of  the  whole  Vosges  region,  the 
valley    of    the    Thur,    and     many    strategic 


Indian  soltlitrs  on  thuir  way  tu  !■  ranee 


neighboring  stream  to  bathe — putting  off,  it 
would  appear,  their  enmities  with  tbe  uni- 
forms that  symbolized  them. 

While  holding  the  invaders  back  from  their 
territory  the  French  were  making  inroads — 
small,  indeed,  but  to  the  French  mind  im- 
mensely gratifying — upon  German  lands. 
For  Alsace,  which  had  been  lost  in  1871,  into 
which  at  the  opening  of  this  war  the  soldiers 
cf  the  Republic  had  exultantly  streamed  only 
to  be  driven  out  again,  was  now  coming  once 
more  into  their  possession.  From  Belfort, 
the  most  southeasterly  of  the  French  fort- 
resses,  they   poured    mto   Alsace,  occupying 


mountain  passes.  Their  material  gains  were 
little.  Miilhausen  and  Altkirch  were  still 
holding  out  against  them.  But  their  po- 
sitions were  such  as  to  promise  an  acti\e  ad- 
vance in  the  spring  when  the  heavy  snows 
that  blocked  the  mountain  roads  siiould  have 
melted  away,  ^'et  their  successes  in  that 
region  were  no  offset  to  the  tremendous  ad- 
vantage held  by  the  forces  of  the  Kaiser  in  the 
west. 

For,  checked  in  his  advance,  forced  to  a 
standstill  as  he  was,  the  Kaiser  still  held  at 
the  end  of  1914  the  position  in  the  west 
practically    of    a    conqueror.     All    Belgium, 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


97 


Her  husband  slain,  her  home  desrroyed 


(  "i'V'i    lit  liy  Inlernalicinal  News  Ser\'icc 


Homeless  in  the  pjili  of  the  InvaJers 


98 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


So    thoroughly 
were  his  troops 
entrenched     in 
France      and 
Belgium,     it 
seemed  nothing 
could      drive 
themout.  "The 
march     upon 
Berlin,"  said  a 
German    gen- 
eral in   answer 
to    a    French 
boast,   "would 
take  years  and 
cost  5,000  men 
a  day."     Prob- 
ably   this    was 
no    over-state- 
ment.     The 
German     posi- 
tions    in     Bel- 
gium, at  least, 
seemed   almost 
impregnable, 
while  the  past 
had    been     for 
the    German 
Emperor     one 


save  perhaps  35  square  miles  in  its  extreme 
corner,  was  his.  Belgian  cities  like  Brussels, 
Antwerp,  and  Ghent  were  ruled  by  his  officers, 
and  paid  tribute  to  his  treasury.  His  armies 
held  about  8,000  square  miles  of  French 
territory,  inhabited  by  2,500,000  Frenchmen. 
Save  for  a  little  corner  of  East  Prussia,  all  the 
fighting  was  on  the  soil  of  his  enemies;  his 
own  land  knew  little  of  the  horrors  of  war. 


General  JofFre,  directing  the  French  force 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


99 


long  record   of 
^•ictory. 

Yet  the  vic- 
tories were  of  a 
sort  that,  a-  t':  a 
event  shows 
did  not  hasten 
the  end  of  the 
war  but  rather 
prolonged  it. 
The  callous  antl 
cynical  indiffer- 
ence to  neutral 
rights  mani- 
fested in  the  in- 
vasion of  Bel- 
gium not  only 
brought  Eng- 
land into  the 
field  as  a  foe  to 
Germany  but 
more  than  a 
year  later  was 
a  powerful 
argument  for 
the  entrance  of 
Italy  upon  the 
struggle  as  one 
of  the  Allies. 


General  von  Buelow  of  the  German  army 


Copyright  by  International  \f 

The  work  of  a  shell  in  the  Malines  Cathecir.il 

The  atrocities  perpetrated  in  Belgium  were 
awakening  an  ever  louder  chorus  of  indigna- 
tion from  neutral  nations.  The  presence  of  a 
foe  on  their  soil  aroused  the  French  to  such 
prodigies  of  valor  and  sacrifice  as  awakened 
the  admiration  of  the  world.  In  the  end  it 
seems  likely  that  I9i4will  be  looked  upon  as 
the  time  when  the  glory  of  the  Kaiser  reached 
its  culmination,  for  thereafter  the  tide  of  ruc- 
cess  no  longer  carried  him  smoothly  to  victor}-. 


lOO 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Cop>  riglit  by  Undernuod  &  Underwood 

Strassburg,  next  to  Metz  the  most  important  city  in  Alsace-Lorraine,  toward  which  the  French  forces  first  marched 

CHRONOLOGY  OF  PERIOD  TREATED  IN  CHAPTER  III 


September  15.  Beginning  the  Battle  of  the  Aisne,  extending 
from  Noyon  to  Verdun. 

September  17.     French  advancing  in  V.'oevre. 

September  18.  AMies'  left  and  right  wings  advance.  I'eavy 
fighting  at  Rheims.  Beginning  of  the  German  bombard- 
ment of  Cathedral  of  Notre  Dame  in  that  city. 

September  20.     Heavy  fighting  at  Rheims  and  Soissons. 

September  21.     .Allies  gain  between  Rheims  and  the  Argonne. 

September  23.  Germans  bombard  Verdun.  (The  (lerman 
attack  upon  this  famous  fortress  will  he  treated  in  a  chapter 
by  itself.  Verdun  was  first  bombarded  September  4,  1914. 
On  .'Xugust  I,  1916,  it  still  defied  its  assailants,  although  for 
six  months  prior  to  that  date  the  most  strenuous  eflforts  of 
the  German  army,  led  by  the  Crown  Prince,  had  been  put 
forth  for  its  subjection.) 

September  26.  Germans  take  Kort  des  Romaines  and  cross 
the  Meuse. 

September  29.  Germans  take  Malines  and  shell  the  outer  forts 
of  Antwerp.     The  fighting  on  the  Aisne  still  continues. 

October  I.  Belgians  repulse  German  attacks  on  Antwerp 
forts. 


October  2 
Arras. 


.Allies'  northern   advance  in  the  west  checked   at 


October  4.  Germans  capture  three  forts  defending  .Antwerp. 
.Allied  relief  expedition  reaches  .Antwerp, 

October  6.  Heavy  fighting  along  the  Oise,  Soissons,  Lille, 
and  Yprcs. 

October  8.      Bombardment  of  Antwerp. 

October  10.     .Antwerp  surrenders.     Belgian  army  escapes. 

October  II.  British  and  Eelgian  forces  from  Antwerp  make 
a  stand  at  Ostend. 

October  12.  Belgians  occupy  Ghent  and  press  on  towaid 
Ostend  and  Bruges.     Lille  taken  by  Germans. 

October  14.  Belgians  abandon  Ostend  and  join  .Allie^i  in  the 
field.     Allies  reoccupy  Ypres. 

October  16.  Germans  occupy  Ostend.  Their  battleline  reach- 
ing the  ,sea  for  the  first  time.  Their  attempt  to  take  Dun- 
kirk checked. 

October  18.  Fighting  along  Ypres  canal  and  River  Yser. 
The  beginning  of  a  deadlock  lasting  fully  eighteen  months 
in  the  water-logged  section  of  northwestern  France  and 
southwestern  Belgmm. 


I02 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


CHAPTER    IV 


THE    WAR    IN   THE    EAST SWIFT    INVASION    OF    EAST  PRUSSIA  BY  RUSSIANS THEIR 

DEFEAT    AT     TANNENBERG— RUSSIANS     ADVANCE     INTO    GALICIA CHARACTER     OF 

AUSTRIAN    ARMIES THEIR     FAILURE     BEFORE     RUSSIAN    ATTACK. GERMANS    COME 

TO     THE     RESCUE       TIDE     OF     BATTLE     BEFORE     CRACOW WARSAW    AND    PRZEMYSL 


O  ALL -COM FELL- 
ING and  spectacu- 
lar was  the  march 
of  the  German 
hosts  through  Bel- 
gium and  France  to 
the  vePt"  gates  of 
Paris  thatduring 
the  first  six  weeks 
of  the  war  atten- 
tion was  little  di- 
rected to  its  pro- 
gress m  eastern 
Europe — on  the 
borders  of  Aus- 
tria and  Servia 
where  the  confla- 
gration started, 
and  on  the  Rus- 
so-German  fron- 
tier where  lay 
from  the  very 
first  Germany's  point  of  greatest  weakness. 
The  world  knew,  of  course,  that  beyond  the 
little-known  banksof  the  Vistula,  the  Dneister, 
and  the  San  the  great  Russian  monster  was 
slowly  rolling  together  its  masses  of  armed 
men  readjto  overwhelmGermanyand  Austria 
by  sheer  weight  of  numbers.  But  the  world 
knew  not  the  new  Russia.  It  considered  the 
boundless  steppes,  the  widely  separated  vil- 
lages, the  single-track  railroads,  the  highways 
which  a  rain  turns  into  a  bottomless  bog,  and  it 
dismissed  the  thought  of  Russia  becoming  a 
factor  in  the  war  for  at  least  two  months  after 
its  declaration.  This  was  obviously  the  antici- 
pation of  Emperor  William,  and  was  the  second 
of  the  two  illusions  which  led  him  to  embark 
upon  the  struggle  with  a  supreme  confidence 
which   the  event  ill-justified — the  first  being 


Among  military  experts  generally  August 
26th  was  fixed  as  about  the  earliest  date  upon 
which  the  Russians  could  complete  mobiliza- 
tion and  take  the  offensive.  But  fully  two 
weeks  earlier  the  Czar's  legions  were  in 
motion.  The  swiftness  of  the  Russian  ad- 
vance found  Germany  most  inadequately  pre- 
pared. Only  three  army  corps,  less  than 
150,000  men  in  all,  were  available  for  defence 
in  East  Prussia  when  the  Russians  first  struck 
at  Gumbinnen  on  August  20,  1914.  So  thor- 
oughly had  the  Kaiser  stripped  his  eastern 
frontier  of  troops  in  order  the  more  certainly 
to  overwhelm  Belgium  and  France  that  the 
Russians,  with  more  than  750,000  men,  at 
first  seemed  able  to  sweep  all  before  them. 
In  a  week  the  greater  part  of  East  Prussia 
was  in  their  possession  and  Konigsberg,  a 
fortified  town  of  250,000  inhabitants  on  the 
Baltic,  and  the  fortresses  of  Thorn  and 
Gradenz,  were  besieged.  The  country  is  a 
difficult  one  for  military  operations,  being 
marshy  and  plentifully  interspersed  with 
small  lakes.  The  progress  of  the  Russian 
armies,  too,  was  checked  at  the  frontier  by  a 
change  in  the  gauge  of  the  railroads,  Russia 
using  a  wider  gauge. 

Examination  of  the  map  will  show  the  na- 
ture of  the  strategic  problem  with  which  the 
Russians  had  to  grapple.  That  part  of  the 
Czar's  domain  known  as  Russian  Poland 
projects  to  the  westward  between  East 
Prussia  and  Austria-Hungary  until  it  reaches 
a  point  only  140  miles  from  Berlin  as  the 
crow  flies.  From  the  first  Berlin  was  the 
Czar's  objective  though  the  topography  of 
the  country  in  which  his  armies  operated 
made  it  equally  easy  for  him  until  late  in  his 
campaign  to  strike  at  either  Vienna  or  Berlin, 
while  the  magnitude  of  his  armies  made  it 


his  misconception  of  the  isolated  position  of     perfectly   possible   for  him   to   menace   both 
Germany  among  the  nations  of  Europe.  capitals.     But  by  agreement  with  the  Allies 

103 


I04 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


he  was  to  threaten  BerHn  from  the  very- 
beginning  of  his  operations  in  order  that  the 
Kaiser  might  he  compelled  to  recall  some  of 
his  troops  from  France  to  protect  his  own 
capital. 

Though  it  would  appear  that  the  westward 
thrust  of  Russian  Poland  made  it  simple  for 
the  Russians  to  begin  their  invasion  of  Ger- 
many within  140  miles  of  Berlin,  the  princi- 
ples of  safe  strategy  would  not  permit  this. 
The  frontiers  of  East  Prussia  to  the  north  and 


forces  operating  before  Paris,  and  dispatch 
them  to  the  danger  point  in  the  east.  That 
was  the  moment  when  Von  Kluck  halted  iiis 
hitherto  resistless  march  upon  the  French 
capital.  It  was  the  critical  incident  which 
showed  that  the  delay  in  Belgium  and  the 
unexpected  swiftness  of  Russian  mobilization 
had  defeated  the  Kaiser's  plan  of  first  crush- 
ing France  and  then  turning  upon  the  Rus- 
sian Bear.  The  moment  when  the  diversion 
of  German  troops  from  France  to  East  Prus- 


Polisli  women  work  lor  tin-  rclii  f  of  iifiit;ees.      Poland  has  its  relief  pnihlem  no  less  than  Belgium,  and  the  hardships  endured 
by  the  citizens  of  its  destroyed  towns  are  almost  beyond  description 


Galicia  to  the  south  were  lined  with  forts 
protecting  hostile  Germans  and  Austrians  who 
would  close  in  behind  the  Russian  troops, 
should  they  take  the  most  direct  route  to 
Berlin,  and  cut  them  ofi^"  from  their  base. 
Russia  struck  first  at  East  Prussia,  where 
there  were  only  three  German  army  corps,  or 
about  150,000  men  to  meet.  For  the  over- 
whelming force  which  the  Czar  put  into  the 
field  this  was  hardly  a  stumbling  block. 
Despite  the  gallant  resistance,  despite,  too, 
the  difficult  nature  of  the  campaign  the  in- 
vaders moved  resistlessly  onward  until  the 
menacing  progress  of  their  armies  forced  the 
Kaiser  to   recall   two   army   corps   from  the 


sia  was  compelled  was  as  fraught  with  im- 
portance to  the  history  of  Europe  as  was  to 
the  history  of  the  United  States  the  appear- 
ance of  the  Monitor  in  Hampton  Roads  on 
the  very  day  when,  but  for  it,  the  Merrimac 
would  have  completed  the  destruction  of  the 
Union  fleet  and  put  to  sea  to  lay  the  cities 
of  the  North  under  tribute. 

Under  command  of  General  Rennenkampf, 
a  dashing  cavalryman  who  brought  back 
from  the  war  in  Manchuria  the  title  of  "the 
Russian  Tiger,"  it  took  the  Russians  scarcely 
a  week  to  sweep  so  far  into  German  Poland 
that  the  non-military  world  began  to  think 
that    Germany's    downfall    was    destmed    to 


THE     NATIONS     AT    WAR 


lo; 


Ru5  3(6m  Troops       


Ihe  Russians  were  long  halted  on  the  line  shown  in  Galicia.      Cracow  and  Przemysl  were   both  rclicvt-d   by   the  Germans  on 


/v  Tomaszow     1,  I  •  , 


•  RavJiiRujto', 


•Rowrio 

Dubno 


•  Prague  -^.V    — |  i_j — •j^—..^-' Jaroslaw^ 


General  map  of  the  Eastern  Theatre  of  War,  the  shaded  portion  sh-mins  extent  of  the  Russian  advance.  DiirinK  the  period 
covered  by  Chapter  IV  the  Russians  menaced  KfiniBsberc  were  b  atcn  at  Allenstein.  and  in  Calicia  prouressed  as  far  as  Przetnysl, 
while  their  cavalry  passed  beyond  the  Carpathians.     The  Germans  pushed  east  m  Poland  almost  to  Warsaw 


io6 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


THE     N  A  I  IONS    A  1     WAR 


107 


come  from  that 
quarter.  Look- 
ing back  upon 
that  moment,  so 
critical  to  Ger- 
many in  every 
phase  of  hei 
manv-sided  cam- 
paign, one  can 
but  admire  the 
magnificent  de- 
termination witli 
which  the  Kaiser 
and  his  General 
StafFclosed  their 
ears  to  the  cries 
for  help  from 
East  Prussia  and 
stubbornly  ad- 
hered to  their 
purpose  to  crush 
Erance  before 
turning  to  meet 
the  Russian 
peril.  Konigs- 
berg, Thorn,  and 
Grandenz,  all 
fortresses  of  the 
first  class,  were 
invested  before 
the  German 
force  under  Gen- 
eral Hindenburg 
was  sufficiently 
re  en  forced  to 
make  headway 
against  the  in- 
vaders. To  se- 
cure these  reen- 
forcements,  Bel- 
gian towns  that 

had  been  taken  at  the  sacrifice  of  thousands 
of  German  lives  were  stripped  of  their  gar- 
risons, and  the  line  of  communicaiion  of  the 
army  before  Paris,  with  its  base  at  Aix-la- 
Chapelle,  was  left  so  scantily  guarded  as  to 
tempt  the  Belgian  army  to  new  activity. 

But  when  the  Germans  did  turn  their 
attention  to  the  Russians  in  eastern  Prussia 
the  work  thev  did  was  sharp  and  efFectne. 
In  all,  General  Hindenburg  had  about 
350,000  troops  to  oppose  to  a  vastly  superior 
Russian  force,  but  within  a  week  he  had 
pushed  them  back  from  the  fortified  positions 
they  menaced,  forced  them  to  fight  the 
pitched  battle  of  Tannenberg,  and  defeated 


Spits  rakt-n  fr'nii  a  li.ustack  bv  Cussack  soKiuts 


them  decisively,  capturing  nearly  So,ooo  men. 

A  difficult  and  treacherous  country  and  a 
German  general  who  from  youth  had  studied 
the  characteristics  of  this  country  and  knew 
instantly  and  precisely  how  best  to  apply 
them  to  the  needs  of  any  military  situation 
that  might  confront  him,  were  the  two  factors 
which  contributed  chiefly  to  the  Russian  dis- 
aster in  East  Prussia. 

The  district  in  which  occurred  the  battle, 
which  the  Germans  call  Tannenberg  and  the 
Russians  Allenstein,  is  sparsely  inhabited  with 
few  railroads  and  bad  highways.  It  is  part  of 
what  is  know^n  as  the  Masurian  Lake  district, 
a  region  of  sandy  hillocks,  scant  patches  of 


io8 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


t  ^ 


Russian  commissary  officers  determining  the  portions  of  food  for  the  soldiers 


forest,  and  innumeiable  bodies  of  water  rang- 
ing from  small  pools  to  considerable  lakes. 
Much  of  the  land  that  seems  to  the  eye  solid 
is  in  fact  a  bog  which  refuses  to  support  the 
weight  of  man.  The  lakes  are  doubly 
treacherous  because  across  some  extend  fords 
of  sand  or  gravel  capable  of  carrying  the 
heaviest  burdens,  while  the  bottom  of  a 
sheet  of  water  only  a  few  hundred  yards  away 
will  be  of  illimitable  mud.  In  places  ridges  of 
sand  or  clay  extend  into  the  lake  and  come  to 


a  sudden  end,  leaving  any 
body  oi  troops  that  think 
to  use  them  as  fords,  en- 
trapped in  deep  water  or 
deeper  mud.  By  ages  of 
labor  the  Germans  had 
laid  out  narrow  turnpikes 
between  the  lakes,  but 
these  were  insufficient  for 
the  passage  of  any  large 
army  and  out  of  touch 
with  each  other.  There 
was  no  possibility  of  de- 
ploying troops  between 
the  roads.  If  the  road 
was  so  crowded  that  the 
marching  men  spread  out 
into  the  adjacent  fields, 
they  would  find  them- 
selves mired.  It  was  al- 
most impossible  to  judge  by  the  appearance 
of  the  surface  whether  the  ground  might  be 
trusted  to  bear  any  considerable  burden. 

The  physical  menace  of  this  treacherous 
territory  would  have  been  as  great  to  either 
side  had  it  not  been  that  the  Germans  were 
commanded  by  a  man  who  had  foreseen  years 
before  the  possibility  of  a  great  battle  in  this 
territory  and  prepared  himself  to  utilize  to  the 
fullest  extent  all  its  treacherous  qualities 
against    any   possible    enemy.     General    von 


Russian  machine  gun^,  captured  by  theCiermans  and  exliihitud  in  BcrUn 


THE    NA'IIONS;    AT    WAR 


109 


Hindenburg  was  born  in 
this  section  of  eastern 
Prussia,  served  all  his  life 
in  the  army,  and  years  be- 
fore asked  to]  be  assigned 
to  duty  in  this  section  the 
very  nature  of  which 
might  well  repel  any  sol- 
dier. His  furloughs  were 
spent  among  the  lakes, 
and  he  knew  intimately 
the  nature  of  the  bottom 
of  each,  the  character  of 
its  ford,  and  the  degree  of 
reliancethat  might  be  put 
upon  the  stability  of  the 
strips  of  soil  separating 
them.  "The  Old  Man 
of  the  Lakes  "  his  soldiers 
came  to  call  him. 

With  his  knowledge  of  the  nature  of  the 
battlefield  to  which  he  was  inviting  the  Rus- 
sian invaders,  Hindenburg  calmly  awaited 
their  attack.  He  was  confident  that  once  they 
were  enmeshed  in  that  water-logged  region  his 
superior  knowledge  of  the  territory  would 
make  amends  for  any  possible  shortage  in  his 
men.  The  first  clash  between  the  two  forces 
had  resulted  in  Russian  victory.  With  two 
armies,  numbering  in  the  neighborhood  of 
200,000  men,  they  had  advanced  into  East 


What  the  Russians  did  to  a  bridge  at  Przemysl 


Prussia  both  from  the  east  and  from  the 
south.  They  encountered  the  Germans  first 
at  Gumbinnen,  defeated  them  there  and  drove 
them  back  upon  Kcinigsberg.  A  few  days 
later  another  Russian  army,  again  enjoying 
the  superiority  in  numbers,  overwhelmed  a 
German  army  corps  near  Frankenau.  By  the 
25th  of  August  a  vast  crowd  of  refugees  was 
fleeing  to  the  westward  and  it  seemed  that 
nothing  would  block  the  Russian  advance. 
But  by  this  time  Von  Hindenburg  had  secured 


The  ghastly  task  of  clearing  a  battleheld 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


no 

what  he  believed  to  be  a  sufficient  force  and 
was  ready  to  make  a  stand.  His  troops  were 
drawn  in  part  from  the  German  line  as  far 
away  as  Flanders.  In  all  he  had  probably 
200,000  men  or  nearly  as  many  as  the  Rus- 
sian, General  Samsonof{',  who  opposed  him. 
Within  forty-eight  hours  after  the  opening  of 
battle  he  had  dealt  the  Russians  such  blows 
that  nothing  was  left  for  them  but  retreat. 


an  impassable  bog  in  which  horses,  men,  and 
guns  slowly  sank  from  sight.  They  essayed 
the  passage  of  the  lakes  by  fords  which  led 
them  as  far  as  the  middle  of  the  waters  and 
then  dropped  them  off  to  destruction.  There 
was  no  possibility  of  rearguard  fighting  that 
would  cover  such  a  retreat.  There  was  no 
chance  of  cooperation  between  the  various 
bodies  of  the  army  which  rapidly  became  de- 


Lan  Press  Associat.'  . 


A  German  masked  battery 


Then  followed  the  greatest  disaster  of  the 
early  days  of  the  war  to  the  allied  forces. 
For  Hindenburg  had  so  utilized  his  knowledge 
of  the  Masurian  Lake  country  that  he  had 
penned  the  unfortunate  Russians  in  that  be- 
wildering and  fatal  maze  of  marshes,  creeks, 
lakes,  and  quagmires.  He  was  well  provided 
with  field  artillery,  and  the  heavy  fire  of  his 
guns  made  the  orderly  retreat  of  the  Russians 
along  the  narrow  road  impossible.  They 
broke  and  took  to  the  fields,  only  to  find  that 
what  appeared  to  be  solid  ground  was  in  fact 


moralized.  Regiments  and  brigades  were 
swallowed  up,  and  the  toll  of  death  taken  by 
Hindenburg's  merciless  artillery  was  moderate 
in  comparison  to  the  numbers  of  men  swal- 
lowed up  in  the  mud  and  water.  The  ac- 
counts of  eye-witnesses  are  ghastly  in  their 
descriptions  of  the  cries  of  whole  battalions  of 
men  rising  out  of  the  night  from  some  dark 
quicksand  in  which  they  were  being  slowly  en- 
gulfed. 

The  portion  of  the  Russian  army  that  was 
caught   in   this   colossal  trap   was   fairly   an- 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


III 


Civilians  prtparing 


ring  to  leave  Warsaw  as  the  Cicinians  apiiroacli 


German  troops  atten- 


d  service  in  tlie  garrison  church  at  I'rdenii : 


ii: 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


THE     NATIONS     AT     WAR 


113 


ku'-siaii  intantr\  :iiui  civil:aiis  evacuating  Przemysl 


niliilated.  More  than  80,000  men  were  cap- 
tured by  the  Germans,  and  it  is  estimated  tliat 
almost  as  man>-  more  lost  their  hves.  The 
fragments  ot  the  army  receded  upon  Russia 
and  it  was  long  before  they  recuperated 
sufficiently  to  take  up  again  the  task  of  in- 
vadmg  Prussia.  Numbers  of  the  prisoners 
and  hundreds  ot  the  captured  cannon  were 
sent  to  Berlin  where  they  arrived  in  season  to 
be  paraded  in  triumph  before  the  people  on 
the  anniversary  of  Sedan.  It  was  at  least 
some  compensation  to  the  German  nation  for 
the  failure  of  the  arm\'  in  the  west  to  enter 


Pans  on  that  day.  Hindenburg  became  the 
idol  ot  the  German  people,  and  though  in 
later  actions  his  good  fortune  did  not  adhere 
to  him,  he  never  lost  the  heroic  position  he  at- 
tained by  the  battle  of  the  Masurian  Lakes. 
By  the  1st  of  October  the  whole  of  eastern 
Prussia  had  been  cleared  of  Russians,  the 
Germans  having  concentrated  there  their 
main  endeavors  in  the  east.  Besides  freeing 
their  own  territory  of  the  enemy,  they  were 
tr\  ing  to  divert  the  Russians  from  the  inva- 
sion of  Galicia  to  the  south,  which  by  this 
time  was  shown  to  be  the  main  feature  of  the 


'^^l\ 


Russian  prisoners  after  being  bathed,  shaved,  and  fumigated  by  the  Cierman  sanitation  corps 


114 


THE    NATIONS     AT    WAR 


Russian  campaign.  But  from  this  tlie  Rus- 
sians refused  to  be  diverted.  Rennenkampf, 
having  lost  the  battle  of  Allenstein,  and  re- 
treated as  far  as  the  banks  of  the  Neiman, 
made  a  brief  stand  there,  then  attacked  in  his 
turn,  driving  the  Germans  back  to  their  own 
frontier.  There  we  may 
leave  him  for  a  time,  and 
turn  our  attention  to  the 
main  Russian  campaign 
in  Austrian  Poland  or 
Galicia. 

If  the  reader  will  con- 
sult again  the  general 
map  of  the  scene  of 
the  war  in  the  east  he 
■will  see  that  just  south 
of  that  part  ot  Russian 
Poland  which  juts  out 
into  German  territory 
lies  the  Austrian  pro- 
vmce  of  Galicia.  If  nat- 
ural boundaries  formed 
in  fact  the  boundaries 
of  states  in  Europe, 
Galicia  would  belong  to 
Russia,  and  the  frontier 
be  pushed  back  to  the 
south  where  the  line  of 
the  Carpathian  Moun- 
tains rears  a  natural 
barrier  between  the  two 
countries.  International 
politics,  however,  made 
Galicia  Austrian  nearly 
forty  years  ago,  and  as 
nature  had  left  it  peculi- 
arly exposed  to  Russian 
invasion,  it  became  to 
the  war  in  the  east  what 
Belgium  was  in  the  west 
— the  great  field  of  battle 
of  the  warring  nations. 

Austria  was  in  no  way 
fitted  to  cope  with  Rus- 
sia in  the  field.  An  in- 
tensely mditary  nation, 

if  the  tone  of  her  society  m  time  of  peace 
is  at  all  representative,  she  has  had  a  more 
niglorious  record  of  defeats  and  unsuccess- 
ful wars  than  any  other  power  of  Europe. 
The  nominal  war  strength  of  her  armies, 
1,360,000  with  a  maximum  strength  of 
4,320,000,  is  far  more  mipressive  than  their 
history.  The  last  time  Austria-Hungary  ap- 
peared in  panoply  of  war — except  in  petty 


Balkan  quarrels — was  In  1S66  when  her 
forces  were  decisively  beaten  at  Koniggratz 
by  the  Prussians,  their  allies  in  the  war  of 
1914. 

After  having  lighted  the  fuse  that  fired  the 
war  magazine  of  all  Europe,  Austria  settled 


General  PopofF  watching  the  battle  of  Przasnysz.  During  this  fight  a  single  division 
of  the  Russian  army  repulsed  a  superior  force  of  Germans  and  took  10,000  prisoners.  It 
was  here  that  Hindenburg's  "lightning  drive"  into  Russian  Poland  was  stopped 

back  to  an  inglorious  career  of  futile  self- 
defense.  Her  armies  did  indeed  bombard 
Belgrade  and  begin  a  brief  invasion  of  Servia, 
but  were  speedily  called  back  to  meet  the 
Russian  menace  to  the  north.  A  brief  rush 
into  the  territory  of  the  Bear  carried  the 
Austrian  standards  as  far  as  Lublin  in  Rus- 
sian Poland.  There  they  stopped.  The  Rus- 
sian   army,   estimated    at    a    million    strong, 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


II! 


Dan£ig — a  strung  iiiaritiiuc  turtrcss  and  seaport  ut  CJcrmany  on  tlic  Ictt  bank  ut  the  western  arm  ot  the  Vistula 


The  Rathaus  in  Breslau 


ii6 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


German  Taube  brought  to  earth  by  Cossacks  in  Russian  Poland 


Struck  in  its  turn.  Remorselessly,  over- 
whelmingly, rolling  resistlessly  onward  like  a 
tidal  wave,  it  bore  back  the  Austrians  by 
sheer  power  of  weight.  The  Russian  left 
rested  in  the  passes  of  the  Carpathians,  its 
right  reached  as  far  into  Russian  Poland  as 
Lublin.  Two  rivers  barred  the  progress  of 
this  army,  the  Bug  and  the  San,  but  despite 
the  savage  resistance  of  the  Austrian  artillery 
— the  most  efficient  branch  of  that  country's 
military  force — both  were  passed.  The 
country  was  a  difficult  one  in  which  to  operate. 
The  rivers  were  either  bordered  by  wide 
marshes    or    flowed     tumultuousK-    through 


deep,  rocky  canyons.  The  roads  in  the  mam 
were  wretched,  and  had  the  Russians  or 
Austrians  possessed  the  great  guns  which  the 
Germans  dragged  so  rapidly  along  the  level 
highways  of  Belgium,  they  could  have  made 
no  use  of  them. 

There  were,  however,  no  such  ponderous 
fortresses  to  stay  the  Russian  progress  in 
Galicia  as  confronted  the  Germans  in  Bel- 
gmm.  Lemberg,  a  place  of  moderate 
strength,  was  taken  September  ist,  the  vic- 
tory being  accompanied  by  the  capture  of  an 
enormous  body  of  Austrians,  estimated  at  the 
time  at  .So.ooo,  and  the  killing  or  wounding  of 


THE     NATIONS     AT    W  A  R 


'•7 


half  as  many 
more.  To  Rus- 
sia the  victory 
was  an  ofFset  to 
the  disaster  of 
Tannenbero; 
which  befell  the 
same  week. 
Practically  as 
many  men  were 
lost  to  Austria 
here  as  were 
lost  to  Russia 
in  the  battle  of 
the  Masurian 
Lakes. 

This  victory 
had  its  prompt 
effect  on  the  German  lines  before  Paris.     It 
was  only  too  clear  that  with  Lemberg  fallen 
and  the  Russians  outnumbering  the  Austrians 
nearly  three  to  one,  there  was  a  new  danger 
threatening  Berlin  from  the  south  and  east. 
At  the  beginning  of  the  war  Austria,  thinking 
like  her  ally  that  Russia  was  too  big  to  move 
swiftly,  had  lent  two  army  corps  to  Germany. 
These    were    hastily    recalled.     With    them 
came  five  German  corps,  snatched  from  Von 
Kluck  and  Von  Buelow  while  the  Battle  of  the 
Marne  was  in  progress.  The  new- 
comers set  themselves  stubbornly 
across  the  Russian  path 
and    there    fol- 
lowed weeks  of  '■ 
fighting  as  des- 
perate  as  that 
in  the  faiijfields 
of  France 
and     Bel- 
gium. 


he  liuiiui  ul  vmi — unu  ut  the  Aubtii.ui  Jc.ul 


The  objective  points  were  Przemysl  and 
Cracow,  and  in  the  struggle  for  these  fortified 
positions  a  host  of  battles  were  fougbt  in  fields 
that  history  will  scarce  record,  though  the 
numbers  engaged  exceeded  those  at  Waterloo 
or  Sedan. 

Despite  the  overpowering  numbers  of  the 
Russians,  however,  the  operations  of  Septem- 
ber,   1914,   showed    them   quite   incapable   of 
overcoming  the  superior  discipline  and  strate- 
gic skill  of  the  Germans.     The  Austrians,  in- 
deed, they  fought  to  a  standstill. 
After  the  victory  of  Lemberg  the 
Russian  advance  toward  Cracow 
was  steady,  opposed  by  the  Aus- 
trian   forces   in    battles 
like  that  at  Dukla,  but 
never     long     halted. 
Przem\sl,  an  important 
stronghold  with   an  un- 
pronounceable    name, 
which    long  troubled 
disputants    on     war 
strategy,  was  invested 


Burning  the  bodies  (if  rhc- (1<  ail  in  Russia,     (.'leiii.iin'ii  is  in.|in  ui  1 
of  bodies  must  be  disposed  of  in  a  short  time.     This  method  of  disposal  of  the  dead  is  most  resorted  to  when  the  ground  is 
deeply  fro/.en,  making  the  digging  of  graves  a  difficult  and  tedious  task 


Ii8 


THE    NATIONS     AT    WAR 


and  left  for  later  attack  as  the  Russian  ad- 
vance pressed  on.  The  invaders  were  greatly 
helped  by  the  fact  that  they  were  operating 
in  a  country  the  Polish  inhabitants  of  which, 
though  subjects  of  Austria-Hungary,  were 
nevertheless  covertly  friendly  to  the  Russians. 


A  portion  of  tlic  town  ol  Kalvaria,  I'oland,  after  it  had  been  shelled  by  the  Germans 


They  showed  their  friendship  by  eagerly  giv- 
ing information  as  to  the  movements  of  the 
Austrian  troops,  and  many  curious  devices 
were  employed  to  convey  the  information. 
A  coal  fire  making  black  smoke  signified  one 
thing;  a  wood  fire  making  whitish  smoke,  an- 
other. In  the  village  streets  the  position  of 
the  images  on  the  Eikons,  or  shrines,  told  one 
story  to  the  invading  Cossacks,  while  a  seem- 
ingly innocent  display  of  household  utensils, 
or  linen  hanging  from  a  window,  would  put  the 


pursuing  cavalry  on  the  track  of  the  retreat- 
ing enemy. 

By  the  end  of  September  the  Austrians 
had  successfully  withdrawn  their  troops 
which  had  invaded  Russian  Poland,  and 
which  the  world  had  been  informed,  falsely, 
had  been  cut  off  and  cap- 
tured by  the  Russians. 
Forming  a  junction  with 
the  right  wing  of  the  Aus- 
trian army,  these  troops 
rook  up  a  line  with  their 
left  resting  on  the  Vistula 
River,  and  their  right  rest- 
ing on  Przemysl,  whose 
ring  of  forty-one  forts  con- 
nected by  railroads  and 
garrisoned  by  60,000  men 
long  held  the  invaders  m 
check.  Jaroslav,  another 
fortress  of  less  power,  also 
proved  a  serious  stumbl- 
ing-block in  the  Russians' 
path.  Beyond  it,  and  ex- 
tending to  Cracow,  the 
force  opposed  to  the  Rus- 
sianswas  mainly  composed 
of  Germans,  and  against 
them  the  forces  of  the  Czar 
made  but  little  headway. 
September  ended  with 
these  two  armies  beating 
against  each  other  with  but 
little  decisive  result.  The 
ceaseless  attrition  of  the 
Russian  hordes,  however, 
had  told  heavily  upon  the 
Austrians,  who  are  esti- 
mated to  have  lost  during 
the  month's  campaigning 
300,000  men  and  1,000 
guns,  or  nearly  a  third  of 
their  entire  force.  During 
this  period,  too,  the  Serbs 
and  Montenegrins  had 
been  busy  on  the  southern  borders  of  Austria, 
compelling  that  nation  to  keep  at  least 
500,000  men  there. 

Essentially  the  Russian  army  at  this  time 
might  be  taken  as  a  single  hne  of  battle, 
numbering  about  2,300,000  men,  extending 
from  the  Baltic  Sea  to  the  Carpathians.  In 
East  Prussia  it  was  confronted  by  a  German 
army  of  1,000,000  men.  In  Russian  Poland 
the  Germans  had  about  500,000,  and,  though 
outnumbered    by   the    Russians,    held    them 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


119 


Clash   between   advance  guards.     One  ot   the  hundreds  of  small  skirmishes  in  which  many  lives  are  lost  without  an;. 
Clash  between^^^^^^^  ^  g^^  ^^.^^^      ^  detachment  of  Germans  pushing  into  Russ.an  terntorj-  .s  met  by  a  patrol 


long  in  check  on  their  own  soil.  In  the  .south 
the  Germans  and  Austrians  together  had 
perhaps  1,000,000  more. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  month  of  Septem- 
ber it  appeared  that  the  Russian  advance  was 
irresistible.     German  troops  were  withdrawn 


from  Belgium  and  France  and  rushed  to  the 
east.  The  advance  on  Paris  was  checked. 
The  long  struggle  along  the  banks  of  the 
Somme  and  the  Aisne  dragged  its  slow  length 
along,  and  the  world  thought  that  the 
Russian  Bear  had  awakened  in  time  to  balk 


r 


1    !>('        li'UMIM    BV    KKLTI'  HOWITZERS 


•"> 


r 


FOLDOUT  BLANK 


122 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


123 


Germany  of  her  French  prey  and  transfer 
the  scene  of  the  struggle  to  German  soil. 
But  the  world  was  deceived.  That  mar- 
velous fighting  machme  the  Kaiser  and  his 
General  Statl  had  so  patiently  builded 
proved  equal  to  this  new  emergency,  and 
the  Russians  were  roughly  checked  before 
they  had  been  able  to  make  more  than 
a  slight  inroad  on  the  soil  of  the  Fatherland. 


and  abandoned  their  advance  to  the  south  of 
the  Carpathians.  The  world  wondered  at 
this  retreat  in  the  face  of  continuous  victory, 
bur  it  was  learned  in  time  that  the  Russian 
supplies  of  munitions  of  war  had  been  ex- 
hausted. It  was  months  before  the  armies  of 
the  Czar  were  suitably  equipped  to  resume 
theoffensive.  MeantimetheGermans  pushed 
into  Russian  Poland  and  soon  it  was  War- 


Circassian  troups  in  bivouac 


Indeed  the  sudden  check  to  the  Russians, 
and  the  counter-attack  delivered  by  the  Ger- 
mans in  the  first  half  of  October  were  little 
less  remarkable  as  military  achievements 
than  the  rush  of  Von  Kluck's  army  upon 
Paris  in  August.  The  world  had  settled 
down  to  see  the  Russian  Bear  stride  into  Ger- 
manv,  crushing  down  all  opposition.  Berlin 
itself,  despite  messages  of  encouragement  and 
reassurance  from  the  Kaiser,  began  to  show 
signs  of  unrest  and  approaching  panic.  But 
scarcely  had  the  real  fighting  force  of  Ger- 
many come  into  contact  with  the  Russian 
advance  when  all  was  checked.  The  invad- 
ers receded  from  Cracow  and  from  Przemysl, 


saw,  a  Russian  capital,  instead  of  Cracow,  the 
Austrian  stronghold,  that  was  endangered. 

After  the  German  successes  in  the  Masurian 
Lake  region  Von  Hindenburg  began  that  in- 
vasion of  Russian  Poland  which,  with  vary- 
ing fortunes  but  with  the  general  trend  of 
success  on  the  German  side,  was  still  in 
progress  when  the  first  six  months  of  the 
war  closed,  February-  i,  1915. 

Warsaw  was  the  objective,  and  for  these 
six  months  was  the  point  upon  which  con- 
verged all  the  German  lines  of  attack.  These 
lines  came  from  the  north  up  the  Vistula, 
from  the  south  dozen  the  \'istula,  and  directly 
from  the  west  with   Breslau  for  the  German 


T24 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


THE    NATIONS    AT     WAR 


I2S 


Russian  troops  in  the  trenches,  waiting  for  a  Cerman  attack 


base.  The  first  army  was  commanded  by 
General  von  Hindenburg  in  person,  the  sec- 
ond bv  General  Dank!  of  the  Austrian  army, 
and  the  third  by  the  Crown  Prince  of  Ba- 
varia. The  concerted  movement  was  begun 
October  4th,  and  the  forces  thL-n  engaged 
numbered  on  the  German  side  about  400,000 
with  about  200,000  Austrians.  They  were 
heavilv  outnumbered  bv  the  Russians  under 
the  Grand   Duke  Nicholas,  but  nevertheless 


pressed  to  the  very  suburbs  of  Warsaw  with- 
out serious  check  in  the  first  week  of  the 
fightmg.  Here  their  path  was  blocked  by 
not  less  than  a  million  Russians,  who  held 
the  trenches  in  the  German  front  while  their 
wreat  numbers  enabled  them  to  Hank  the 
invaders  with  both  cavalry  and  infantry. 
Before  this  overwhelming  force  the  invaders 
retreated,  and  by  the  end  of  the  month  were 
virtuallv  expelled  from  Russian  soil. 


126 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


127 


**iw. 


Stragglers  trom  the  Russian  line  of  march 

But  to  accomplish  this  Russia  had  been  com- 
pelled to  recall  in  part  her  armies  from  Galicia 
and  the  Carpathians.  The  siege  of  Przemysl 
was  raised,  to  be  renewed  later,  the  troops 
of  the  Czar  were  withdrawn  from  Jaroslav, 
and  Hungary  was  freed  from  their  presence. 
These  sacrifices  had  been  compelled  by  the 
menace  of  Von  Hindenburg's  westward  drive. 

With  his  retreat  it  appeared  that  Russia 
would  retake  her  lost  ground.  Again  Rus- 
sian troops  flowed  over  into  East  Prussia  and 
Galicia.  By  the  middle  of  November  Przem- 
ysl was  again  invested,  the  Cossacks  were  in 
the  passes  of  the  Carpathians,  and  the  Czar's 
guns  pounded  at  the  gates  of  Cracow.  Be- 
fore November  was  half  ended  the  Russians, 
save  for  their  heavy  and  irreparable  losses  at 
Tannenberg,  had  regained  the  advantage 
they  had  lost. 

But  it  was  again  only  the  ebb  of  the  Ger- 
man tide.  Once  more  it  turned  to  the  flood 
and  flowed  back  across  the  territory.  End- 
ing their  retreat  about  the 
middle  of  November,  the 
General  Staffs  hurriedly 
concentrated  their  eastern 
armies  in  the  neighborhood 
of  Thorn  and  again  turned 
their  faces  toward  Warsaw, 
fheir  advance  menaced  Rus- 
sian communications  and  did 
in  fact  cut  the  railroad  lines 
which  tied  the  chief  Russian 
army  to  Warsaw.  But  the 
movement  had  its  perils.  As 
rheGermans  had  cut  the  Rus- 
sian communications,  so  the 


Russian  armies  in  Galicia  and 
in  East  Prussia  could  close  in 
behind  the  audacious  invaders 
and  cut  them  ofl.  This  was 
precisely  what  they  did,  and, 
beginning  November  15th,  ten 
days  of  continuous  fighting 
ended  in  Russian  victory.  The 
newspaper  reports  from  Petro- 
grad  were  delirious  with  claims 
of  victory,  and  even  Berlin 
admitted  disaster.  Warsaw 
had  been  saved  after  the  Kai- 
ser's troops  had  come  within 
sound  of  its  bells.  Von  Hin- 
^  denburg  was  reported,  falsely, 
11  a  prisoner.     At   Lodz  and  at 

Mlawa  the  Germans  were  de- 
cisively beaten.  East  Prussia 
was  still  occupied  by  the  Russians  in  force, 
and  in  Galicia  the  Czar's  successes  were  daily 
augmenting,  and  the  Austrian  armies  were 
rapidly  disintegrating.  Though  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  Lodz  and  Lowicz  German  successes 
were  reported,  the  main  story  of  the  fighting 
along  the  eastern  battleline  was  one  of  Ger- 
man disaster. 

W  hen  December  was  ushered  in  it  appeared 
that  the  Russians  by  mere  force  of  numbers 
had  checked  finally  the  German  advance  upon 
Warsaw.     Not  much  was  heard  of  the  earlier 


Cossacks  capture  German  spies  on  the  thatched  roof  of  a  Polish  farmhouse 


128 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


o 
>, 


'IIIK     NATIONS     AT     WAR 


129 


Russian  promise  of 
"  Ht-iliii  111  three  weeks,  " 
hilt  thedecisiN'enesswith 
whicli  tlie  German  ad- 
\ance  upon  Warsaw  hail 
been  stopped  witliout 
compelhng  the  Russians 
to  withdraw  from  either 
East  Prussia  or  Galicia 
was  generally  accepted 
by  observers  as  indica- 
tive of  the  end. 

Then  in  a  few  weeks 
Von  H  I  n  d  e  n  b  e  r  g  , 
backed  by  tiie  marvelous 
efficiency  of  the  German 
army,  turned  the  tables 
for  the  third  time,  and 
once  again  Berlin  rang 
with  the  praises  of  her 
new  war-lord. 

All  of  Von  Hinden- 
berg's  plans  centred 
upon  a  descent  upon 
Russian    Poland    from 

East  Prussia.  Much  of  the  territory  in  which 
he  planned  to  operate  was  marshy,  full  of  small 
lakes,  and  intersected  with  sluggish  streams. 


Rii.ssian   prisoners  just  as  captured.      Ihey   usually   require  vigorous   dttcniiun   from  tlie 

sanitary  corps 

Ihe  roads  were  mere  dirt  highways  difficult 
in  wet  weather  for  ordinary  luggage  vans, 
but  utterly  impassable  for  the  heavy  artillery 


A  view  of  tile  banks  of  the  river  San  in  Pr7.eniys!.     This  picture  was  made  while  the  Russian!;  had  possession  of  the  Galician 
fortress  which  they  took  after  a  protracted  siece  but  were  unable  to  hold 


130 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


131 


which  Von  Hindenburg  intended  to  marshal 
against  his  foe.  In  December,  tlien,  the  Ger- 
mans began  to  prepare  for  a  winter  campaign 
and  a  third  attack 
on  Warsaw.  The 
frozen  roads  and 
rivers  were  to  be 
the  highways;  the 
snow  should  bear 
the  German  bag- 
gage trains  newly 
mounted  on  run- 
ners. The  familiar 
gray-green  of  the 
German  infantry 
disappeared,  or  was 
covered  up  by 
heavy  sheepskin 
coats,  white  and  in- 
visible against  the 
snow'.  Cannon 
were  mounted  on 
runners.  Motor 
sledges  of  new  types 
appeared.  Scout- 
ing parties  on  foot 
were  equipped  with 
skns.  Great  depots 
of  winter  supplies 
were  established  at 
Thorn  and  Posen. 
Lodz,  the  chief 
m  a  n  u  f  acturing 
town  of  Poland, 
and  Lowicz,  an  im- 
portant railroad 
centre,wereheavil\" 
fortified,  the  indus- 
trial edifices  of  the 
towns  being  torn 
down  to  supply  ma- 
terial for  the  forts, 
and  guns  brought 
from  the  Krupp 
Works  in  Essen  for 
the  armament. 

In  the  struggle 
for  Warsaw,  which 
became  toward  the 
end  of  the  year  the 
chief  bone  of  con- 
tention in  the  eastern  theatre  of  war,  the 
price  paid  by  each  of  the  contestants  was  a 
heavy  one.  Owing  to  the  policy  of  secrecy 
adopted  by  all  the  governments  involved, 
the  precise  losses  of  each  in  any  given  battle, 


campaign,  or  month  of  the  war  will  not  be 
known  definitely  for  years,  or  until  official 
historians  begin  to  give  out  the  authorized 


Fighting  with  the  bayonet  in  a  Polish  cemetery 


accounts  of  the  campaigns.  Petrograd,  how- 
ever, claimed  that  the  (ilermans  had  lost  more 
than  200,000  men  in  their  efforts  to  reach 
Warsaw  up  to  January,  191 5.  Prisoners  to 
the  number  of  135,840  were  claimed  by  the 


132 

Russians.     These  figures 
were  strenuously   denied 
by    the     Germans     who 
claimed    themselves 
to  hold  306,290  Rus- 
sian     prisoners, 
besides     3,575 
officers. 

On     the    last 
day  of  the  year 
the     Germans 
claimed    to 
have    taken 
136,000     pris- 
oners, 1 00  can- 
non,  and    300 
machine  guns  in 
the  Poland  cam- 
paign withm  two 
months. 

Yet    despite 
this  fierce  fight- 
ing,  this    marshaling  ot 
legions  of  men  and  multi- 
tudes of  guns  from  pro- 
digious   distances  —  Von 
Hindenburg  was    said    to 
have  30,000  auto   trucks 
for  transportation  purposes — this 
ended  with  the  struggling  forces 
they  began. 

But  early  in  the  spring  of  1915  the  Rus- 
sians, being  in  possession  of  Przemysl,  deter- 
mined to  invade  Hungary  by  way  of  the 
Carpathian  passes.  For  the  time  operations 
in  East  Prussia 
were  confined  on 
the  part  of  the 
Russians  strictly 
to  the  defensive. 
The  Germans  in- 
deed were  press- 
ing them  hard 
enough  there  to 
keep  them  busy. 
Ihe  advance 
through  the  Car- 
pathian Moun- 
tains went  well 
enough  at  the  out- 
set. As  in  the 
earlier  attacks  the 
Austrians  proved 
no  match  for  the 
multitudinous 
soldiers     of    the 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Ausrn.iiis  las'iriK  a  field  felephontr  linu  across  a  stream 


campaign 
ust  where 


.\;i.'.ii).in  puuaMi.  ill.  iiika iiii;  .ipparatiis 


Great  White  Czar.  But 
the  Germans  rushed  re- 
enforcements  and  leaders 
to  the  threatened 
point  and  just  at  the 
most  critical  mo- 
ment struck  the 
Russian  line  on 
the  D  u  n  a  j  e  c 
River,  broke  it, 
and  thereby 
flanking  the 
line  through 
the  Carpath- 
ians, forced 
the  hurried  re- 
treat of  the  Rus- 
sians. Almost 
simultaneously 
up  in  East  Prus- 
sia the  Germans 
started  a  drive 
with  the  idea  ot  forcing 
the  Russians  back  against 
Warsaw.  North  and 
south  theTeutonic  offen- 
sive was  successful.  The 
Russian  line  which  had 
extended  in  an  approximately  direct  line  from 
the  border  of  East  Prussia  to  the  Carpathians 
was  bent  into  an  acute  angle  like  a  pair  of 
partly  open  dividers  with  Warsaw  at  the  point 
of  junction.  It  soon  became  impossible  for 
the  Russians  to  maintain  their  line  of  com- 
munications from  Warsaw  to  the  south,  and 

just  as  the  second 
year  of  the  war 
was  beginning  in 
August,  1915, 
that  capital  was 
e\'acuated  and 
eagerly  seized  by 
the  Germans. 

The  fall  of  War- 
sawwas  the  signal 
for  another  gen- 
eral Russian  re- 
treat— the  third 
apparently  irre- 
trievable reverse 
suffered  by  the 
armies  of  that 
country  since  the 
beginning  of  the 
war.  Once  again 
East  Prussia  was 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


i^^3 


swept  clear  of  the  Invaders.  The  Carpath- 
ian passes  saw  their  marching  columns  re- 
coihng  in  disorder  toward  Russian  territory. 
Galicia  and  the  fortified  towns  taken  at  such 


tion  of  Petrograd,  the  capital  of  the  Czar's 
empire. 

1  his  high  ambition,  however,  was  not  des- 
tined to  be  gratified.     The  line  the  Russians 


AUSTRIA-HUNGARY 


_  Tarnopol 


GERMAN 
D  AUSTRIAN 
■  RUSSIAN 

Army  Corps  of  about  50,000 
men  with  auxiliaries 
++++  Position  of  Lines  May  15, 1915. 
SCALE  OF  MILES 


50 


100 


150 


I  In  rastiin  triint  in  ilu  early  MiniTiur  nt  i<)iCi 


heavy  cost  were  abandoned.  Worse  than 
all,  the  Germans  swept  triumphantly  through 
Russian  Poland,  not  content  with  \\  arsaw 
alone,  but  seizing  smaller  cities  and  the  rail- 
roads which  gave  them  control  of  all  that 
part  of  Russian  territory.  The  retreat  of  the 
Russians  did  not  end  until  their  right  flank 
was  rested  on  the  Gulf  of  Riga,  and  the  ex- 
ultation of  the  Germans  did  not  hesitate 
at     predicting     their    own     speedy    occupa- 


established  with  their  right  resting  on  Riga 
stood  firm.  The  shortage  of  ammunition 
that  had  cost  the  followers  of  the  Czar  so  dear 
was  met  by  rushing  trains  across  Siberia 
bringing  the  output  of  Japanese  factories — 
the  chief  contribution  of  Japan  to  her  allies. 
The  dogged  Russian  courage  suffered  not  a 
bit  by  the  army's  reverses,  and  after  brief 
recuperations  the  Russian  banners  swept  for- 
ward   again    over   the    thrice    fought    fields. 


134 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


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^  -     ■    ■ 

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; 

w 

1- 

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o 

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*1  •  ;'^ 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


135 


Making  16,000  loaves  of  bread  fur  daily  consumption  in  the  German  army 

CHRONOLOGY  OF   PERIOD  TREATED  IN  CHAPTER   IV 


July  28.  Austria  declares  war  on  Servia.  Russians  mobil- 
izing. 

July  30.  Kaiser  demands  that  Russia  halt  mobilization  within 
twenty-four  hours. 

August  I.     Germany  declares  war  on  Russia. 

August  2.     Russians  cross  German  frontier. 

August  5.     Austria  declares  war  on  Russia. 

August  8.     Germany  invades  Finland. 

August  9.  Russians  invade  .Austria;  are  repulsed  by  Germans 
near  Tilsit. 

August  10.     Germans  concentrate  on  Russian  frontier. 

August  1 1 .     Russians  press  on  into  East  Prussia. 

August  14.     Russians  defeat  Austrians  on  the  Dniester. 

August  17.  Russia  demands  from  Turkey  the  unrestricted 
use  of  the  Dardanelles. 

August  19.     Russians  victorious  over  Austrians  at  Padolia. 

August  20.  Russians  occupy  Gumbinncn  and  Lyck  in  East 
Prussia. 

August  23.  Continued  Russian  succes.ses  carry  Czar's  armies 
fifty  miles  into  Prussia. 

August  24.  .Austria  abandons  Servian  campaign  to  meet  in- 
vading Russians. 

August  26.  Russians  sweep  over  Prussia  menacing  Konigs- 
berg  and  Posen. 

August  27.  Russians  take  Tilsit.  Germans  still  steadily 
retreating. 

August  28.     Russians  reach  Allenstcm. 

August  29.  Russians  invest  Konigsbcrg  in  East  Prussia  and 
Lemberg  in  Galicia. 

August  30.  Russians  advance  to  the  Vistula  and  bombard 
Thorn  and  Graudenz.     Battle  of  Tannenbcrg  begun. 


Septrmber  I.     Germans  inflict  crushing  defeat  on  Russians  at 

Tannenberg. 
September  2.     Russians  victorious   around   Lemberg,   but   re- 
treating in  East  Prussia. 
September^.     Russians  take  Lemberg  and  Halicz.     Begin  new 

march  on  Prussia. 
September  7.     Russians  closing  in  on  Przcmysl. 
September  9.     Last  Austrians  driven  from  Russian  Poland. 
September  10.     Russians  invade  Silesia  and  menace  Breslau. 
Septembers.     Serbs    and    Montenegrins    take    the   offensive 

against  Austria. 
September  13.     Russian     victories     near     Lemberg.     Russo- 

Serb  army  menaces  Budapest. 
Septeviber  17.     .Austrians     retreat     before     Russians     toward 

Cracow. 
September  20. 
September  24. 
September  26. 
September  28. 

Hungary. 

October  3.     Germans  begin  evacuating  Russian  Poland. 
October  5.     Russians    advancing    along    all    lines.     .Approach 

Allenstein  and  Cracow. 
October  7.     Germans  bring  reenforcements  from   Konigsberg 

and  check  Russians. 
October  9.     Russians  bombard  Przemysl. 
October  12.     Russians  abandon  siege  of  Przemysl  and  retreat 

from  Galicia.     (Many  weeks  later  it  was  learned  that  this 

sudden  retreat  of  the  Russians  in  the  face  of  apparently  uti- 

interrupted  successes  was  caused  by  a  sudden  failure  of  their 

supply  of  ammunition. ) 


Russians  attack  Jaroslav  and  Przemysl. 
Relieving  force  of  Germans  occupy  Cracow. 
Russians  enter  Przemysl. 
Russians   cross   the   Carpathians   and    invade 


136 


THE    NATIDN.S    AT    WAR 


Oclohfr  13.      Russians    dcfeati-d    before    Warsaw,    and    fall    of 

the  city  believed  to  be  inevitable. 
October  17.     Heavy  fighting  around  Warsaw  and  Przemysl. 
October  18.     Germans  repulsed  at  passage  of  the  Vistula  with 

heavy  losses. 
October  24.     Russians  drive  Germans  back   forty  miles  trom 

Warsaw. 
October  2S.     Germans  admit  the  retreat  of  their  army  along 

the  Vistula  and  in   Russian   Poland   in  the  face  of  heavy 

Russian  reenforcements. 
November  2.     Russians  advance  upon  East  Prussia.     Warsaw 

apparently  out  of  danger. 
November  6.     Steady    retreat   of  the   German    and    Austrian 

armies  in  Russian  Poland. 
November  10.     Russian  offensive   unchecked.     German   army 

driven  toward  Masurian  Lakes.     Russian  sieges  of  Cracow 

and   Przemysl  renewed.     For  the  ensuing  week  all  the  ad- 
vantage in  the  fighting  is  with  the  Russians. 
November  25.     Main  German  army  seriously  menaced  in  Rus- 
sian Poland.     Heavy  reenforcements  sent  forward,  but  the_ 

retreat  continues  with  no  change  of  fortune  until  the  end  of 

the  month. 
December  i.     Germans  break  through  the  Russian  wing  near 

Lodz,    capturing    12,000    prisoners    and    twenty-five    guns. 

Russians  claim  they  have  taken  50,600  Austrian  prisoners 

in  two  weeks  in  Cialicia. 
December  •;,     Germans  claim  the  capture  of  100,000  prisoners 

in  battles  in  Poland.     Austrians  report  the  taking  of  Bel- 
grade with  the  bayonet. 
December  6.     Germans  occupy  Lodz. 
December  9.     .Austrians     defeated     near     Cracow.     Russians 

claim  that  they  have  750,000  Austrian  and  German  prisoners 

m  Russia. 
December  13.     Germans  are  defeated  in  the  Mlawa  region. 
December  16.     King  Peter  enters  Belgrade  at  the  head  ot  an 

army.     Servia  now  clear  of  invaders. 
December  17.     Germans    declare     Russian    offensive    against 

Silesia  and  Posen  to  be  broken.      Russians  deny  the  report, 

claiming  they  are  shitting  their  battleline. 
December  20.     Von   Hindenburg  again   advancing  upon  War- 
saw. 
December  '^l.     Germans  claim  to  have  taken  140,000  pri.son- 

ers,   100  cannon,   and   300  machine  guns  in   Poland   since 

November      Russians     declare     that     the     Germans     lost 

200,000  men  in  the  battle  of  the  Bzura. 
January!),  1915.     Germans  renew  offensive  trom  direction  of 

Mlawa. 
January  15.     New  Russian  army  marches  north  in   Poland. 

Germans  near  Mlawa  are  in  peril. 
January  16.     Austrians  bring  up  heavy  artillery  to  hold  the 

Donajec  River. 
January  21.     .Austrians  rout  the  Russians  on  the  Donajec. 
January  22.      Budapest  alarmed  by  approach  of  the  Russians. 
January  27.     .Austrians    mass    ten    army    corps    in    .southern 

Hungary;  many  German  regiments  among  them. 
January  28.      Great     struggle     for    the     Carpathians     ojiens. 

.Austro-German  forces  advance  on  an  eighty-mile  front. 
February  3.     Russians   gain    in    Hungary.     German    position 

north  of  the  Vistula  menaced. 
February  \.     Von    Hindenburg    attacks    Russian    lines    near 

Warsaw  with  50,000  men. 
February  7.     (lermans    compelled    to    withdraw    troops    from 

France  to  defend  Fast  I'russia. 
February  8.     Germans    begin    transport    by    motor    cars    of 

600,000  men  from  !*oland  to  Ivast  Prussia. 
February  12.     Von    Hindenburg   wins    a   great    battle    in    the 

Masurian  Lakes,  captures  more  than  30,000  prisoners  with 


fifty  cannon  and  sixty  machine  guns.  Russian  loss  ap- 
proaches 50,000. 

February  15.  Russian  retreat  from  Fast  I'russia  checked. 
Russians  force  the  fighting  in  Galicia  and  the  Carpathians. 

March  2.     Russians  win  Dukla  Pass. 

March  5.  Russians  on  the  offensive  from  the  Baltic  Sea  to 
the  Roumanian  border. 

March  II.  Number  ot  men  engaged  in  battles  in  northern 
Poland  estimated  at  one  million  with  a  battleline  of  eighty 
miles. 

March  15.     Russians  capture  the  outer  defences  of  PrzemysL 

March  ig.  Von  Hindenburg  starts  a  new  offensive  in  central 
Poland. 

March  20.  Statistics  published  in  Petrograd  show  that  95 
towns  and  4,500  villages  in  Russian  Poland  have  been  dev- 
astated as  the  result  of  German  invasion  with  a  damage 
of  j!500,ooo,ooo. 

March  22.  Przemysl  falls  after  being  besieged  since  Septem- 
ber 2d.;  125,000  men,  including  nine  .Austrian  Generals, 
taken;  the  strategic  value  ot  the  place  regarded  as  great. 

March  30.  Russian  advance  in  the  Carpathians  causes 
alarm.  if)0,ooo  German  troops  said  to  be  rushing  to  the 
rescue. 

Jpril  I.  German  Headquarters  Staff  reports  that  in  March 
the  Cierman  army  in  the  east  took  55,800  Russian  prisoners, 
nine  cannon,  and  si.xty-one  machine  guns. 

April  II.  .After  steady  fighting,  during  which  at  rimes  the 
armies  operated  in  seven  teet  of  snow,  the  Russians  occupy 
all  the  main  ridges  of  the  Carpathians;  280,000  Germans,  or 
seven  army  corps,  are  helping  the  .Austrians  in  Hungary. 

April  14.  Petrograd  estimates  that  4,000,000  combatants, 
including  both  sides,  are  engaged  in  the  Carpathians. 

April  18.  Reviewing  the  Carpathian  campaign  the  Russian 
(jeneral  Staff  declares  that  since  the  beginning  of  March 
the  Russians  have  carried  seventy-five  miles  of  the  principal 
chain  of  the  Carpathians,  have  taken  70,000  prisoners, 
thirty  field  guns,  and  200  machine  guns. 

May  3.  Sudden  Russian  weakness  apparent.  General  von 
Mackensen  defeats  the  Russians  in  west  Galicia  taking 
30,000  prisoners  and  many  guns.  .A  continued  .Austro- 
German  advance  begins  lasting  with  slight  checks  until  the 
last  of  the  month.  Jaroslav  is  retaken  by  the  Teutons  and 
Przemysl  menaced. 

May  21.  .Austrians  announce  that  since  May  ist  they  have 
taken  194,000  Russian  prisoners;  Germans  declare  that 
CSeneral  .Mackensen  since  May  ist  has  taken  104,000  pris- 
oners, 72  cannon,  and  253  machine  guns"  the  Russian  state- 
ment declares  that  the  losses  of  the  .Austro-Germans  are  aver- 
aging 10,000  a  day  and  that  they  have  u.sed  between  two 
and  three  million  shells  in  the  recent  fighting. 

June  3.  .Austfo-German  troops  capture  Przemysl  which  had 
been  held  by  the  Russians  since  March  22d. 

June  10.  Russians  again  take  the  offensive  in  the  Baltic 
provinces  and  Cjahcia. 

June  22.  Lemberg  falls  to  the  .Austro-G'-rman  forces,  after 
having  been  held  by  the  Russians  since  September  3d. 
Russians  retreating  throughout  Galicia. 

July  3.  Berlin  reports  that  from  May  2d  to  June  27th,  1,630 
officers  and  520,000  men  of  the  Russian  ;'rmy  have  been  cap- 
tured besides  more  than  a  thousand  field  and  machine  guns. 

Juh  15.  Germans  renew  their  drive  toward  Warsaw.  Hin- 
denburg advancing  from  the  north  and  Mackensen  from  the 
south. 

July  22.  Russians  in  retreat  everywhere  laying  waste  the 
country  as  they  retire,  and  clinging  desperately  to  Warsaw. 

August  5.  Warsaw  taken  by  the  Germans  under  Prince 
Leopold.     Russians    retire    in    good    order,    saving    their 

entire  army- 


ZEPPELIN  L-is  BROUGHT  DOWN  13Y  ANTI-AIRCRAFT  GUNS  OFF  THE  COASl'  OF  KLM 
The  crew  were  rescued  by  English  trawlers  and  treated  as  ordinary  prisoners  of  war 


138 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


CHAPTER    V 


THE  WORK  OFTHK   NAVIES — DISAPPEARANCE  OF  GERMAN  MERCHANT  SHIPS 

COMMERCE  DESTROYERS C7ERMAN    NAVAL    STRATEGY CAPTAIN   WEDDIGEN's 

EXPLOIT THREE       FLEET       BATTLES — NAVAL       RECORD       FOR      TWO      YEARS 


iT  THE  beginning  of  the  war  rhe 
one  thing  which  seemed  absolutely 
inevitable  in  the  conflict  was  that 
the  British  fleet  would 
promptly  and  efficiently 
sweep  the  seas  ot  all 
signs  of  German  naval 
power. 

It  had  long  been  the 
policy  of  Great  Britain  to 
maintain  a  naval  force  at 
least  as  great  as  that  of 
an}-  two  of  her  possible 
rivals.  '  In  1914,  notwith- 
standing the  rapid  devel- 
opment of  the  German 
fleet  under  the  ambitious 
care  of  the  Kaiser,  Great 
Britain  maintained  an 
even  more  overpowering 
standard  of  superiority. 
Indeed  the  increase  of 
the  British  fleet  had  been 
spurred  to  almost  fever- 
ish activity  -by  the  indi- 
cation of  a  determination 
on  the  part  of  Germany 
to  attempt  to  equal,  if 
not  to  exceed  it,  in  power. 
In  1900  the  preamble  to 
the  German  navy  act 
frankU'  expressed  the 
purpose  of  the  German  nation  to  build  a 
fleet  which  should  cope  on  no  unequal  terms 
with  that  of  Great  Britain.  That  started  the 
race  in  naval  construction,  and  in  1906-8 
England  was  aghast  at  the  discovery  that 
while  she  had  laid  down  eight  ships  of  the 
dreadnought  type,  Germany  had  laid  dovvn 
nine.  From  this  moment  rivalry  in  ship 
building  was  unlimited.  Battleships  were 
described  as  old  when  they  had  been  in  com- 
mission   but    four    years.     Nothing    smaller 


French    scaiularj-bearer 
of  the  Turcos 


than  the  dreadnought  with  ten  of  the  largest 
rifles  was  considered  worth  while,  and  the 
type  soon  developed  into  the  superd read- 
nought  class  of  25,000  tons  with  ten  13-inch 
and  twelve  6-inch  guns  with  an  armor  belt  a 
foot  thick  at  its  point  of  greatest  weight. 
Such  a  ship  would  carry  more  than  a  thousand 
officers  and  men  and  cost  about  $io,ooo,eoo. 
Of  vessels  of  this  type  Great  Britain  had 
eleven  complete  and  three  nearly  so  in  1914; 
Germany  had  none,  though  three  were  under 
construction.  Of  the  next  type,  the  dread- 
nought battleship,  Germany  and  England 
had  each  thirteen. 

During  the  course  of  the  war  the  shipyards 
of  both  England  and  Germany  had  been  busy 
day  and  night,  but  the  secrecy  which  envel- 
oped all  governmental  activities  at  that  time 
preclude  any  statement  of  the  war-time  addi- 
tions made  to  the  belligerent  fleets.  At  the 
beginning  of  the  war  the  sea  power  of  the 
hostile  nations  may  be  roughly  estimated 
as  follows: 

Reduced  to  its  very  lowest  terms  of  state- 
ment the  British  navy  at  the  opening  of  the 
war  consisted  of  60  modern  battleships, 
9  battle  cruisers,  34  armored  cruisers,  17 
heavv  protected  cruisers,  70  light  cruisers, 
232  destroyers  then  ready  and  16  building, 
59  torpedo  boats  (and  50  old  ones),  and  75 
submarines,  besides  52  sea-going  auxiliaries  of 
the  fleet,  such  as  mother  ships  for  destroyers, 
mine-layers,  distilling  ships,  oil  ships,  repair 
and  hospital  ships. 

The  French  navy,  though  fourth  in  the 
list  of  naval  powers,  naturally  follows  here 
as  England's  ally.  It  had  18  battleships, 
together  with  eight  building  at  the  war's 
commencement,  19  armored  cruisers,  2  pro- 
tected cruisers,  and  10  light  cruisers.  The 
French  navy  was  peculiarly  strong  in  de- 
strovers,  torpedo  boats,  and  submarines,  hav- 
ing 84  of  the  first  class,   135  torpedo  boats, 


139 


140 


THE    NATIONS 

on   the 


A  T     \V  A  R 


and   78   submarines  with   a   number 
stocks  at  the  beginning  of  the  war. 

Russia,  as  a  naval  power,  was  of  little  im- 
portance in  the  conflict.  Her  losing  war  with 
Japan  had  left  her  with  but  three  of  her  old 


Kaiser 


riis  naval  heads 


-Admiral  von  Tirpitz,  in  centre,  and  Admiral  von  Holt 
zendorf  at  the  right 


battleships,  and  these  with  three  of  later 
construction,  6  armored  cruisers,  91  destroy- 
ers, and  55  submarines  made  up  her  effective 
fleet  which  at  the  beginning  of  the  war  was 
mainly  in  the  Black  Sea. 

The  navy  of  Japan,  though  powerful  and 
highly  efficient,  may  be  ignored  here  as  its 
service  was  mainK  in  the  Pacific. 


lo  meet  this  naval  strength  Germany  of- 
fered naturally  the  most  powerful  fleet,  which 
at  the  outbreak  of  war  was  tied  with  that  of 
the  United  States  in  the  struggle  for  second 
place.     On  her  ships'  roster  at  the  declaration 

of  war  were  36  battle- 
ships, 5  battle  cruisers, 
9  armored  cruisers, and 
43  cruisers  as  the  sea- 
going fleet.  She  had 
also  1 30  destroyers  and 
27  submarines.  The 
first  loss  to  the  navy 
was  that  of  a  subma- 
rine, sunk  by  a  British 
cruiser.  For  some 
reason  Germany  was 
weak  in  torpedo  boats. 
Aust  ri  a-Hungary 
entered  the  struggle 
with  9  battleships,  10 
light  cruisers,  18  de- 
stroyers, 63  torpedo 
boats,  and  6  sub- 
marines. 

It  has  already  been 
pointed  out  that  the 
obvious  design  of  the 
Germans  to  challenge 
British  supremacy  on 
the  ocean  had  much  to 
do  with  the  entrance  of 
Great  Britain  upon  the 
war.  It  was  inter- 
national gossip  that 
the  German  oflBcers 
were  eager  for  the  test, 
and  stories  were  com- 
mon of  a  toast  of  singu- 
lar brevity  and  cryptic 
meaning  that  was 
drunk  at  the  German 
naval  dinner  boards 
when  no  foreign  guests 
were  present:  "  Der 
Tag" — "The  Day" — 
always  brought  the 
officers  to  their  feet 
with  brimming  glasses,  for  it  hailed  in  an- 
ticipation the  day  when  they  should  do  battle 
of  Great  Britain  on  the  seas  she  had  so  long 
professed  to  rule. 

That  day,  however,  did  not  come  soon  nor 
did  it  bring  glory.  Almost  instantly  upon 
the  declaration  of  war  the  German  flag  dis- 
appeared from  the  high  seas.     Merchantmen 


THE    N  A  I' IONS    AT    WAR 


swiftly  noti- 
fied by  wire- 
less sought 
the  shelter  of 
neutral  ports 
— more  than 
^100,000,000 
worth  of  Ger- 
man Imers  be- 
ing tied  up  in 
the  port  of 
New  York 
alone.  The 
British  navy 
swiftly  de- 
scended upon 
G,e  rmany '  s 
colonies 
t  h  r  o  u  g  Ii  o  u  t 
the  world  and 
took  posses- 
sion of  them. 
A  few  German 
commerce  de- 
stroyers re- 
mained at  sea 
and  preyed 
upon  the  mer- 
chant ship- 
ping    of     the 


Cop>ri!;ht  by  UmienioiHl  \-  L'lu!cr^^o..il 

One  of  the  most  remarkable  of  photographs,  taken  from  the  hridKe  of  a  Zeppehn 
during  a  battle  in  the  skies  in  a  German  air  raid  on  England 


141 

Allies  until 
I  lui  down  by 
the  British 
navy  and  de- 
stroyed. But 
the  great 
fighting  fleet 
ol  Germany 
took  refuge  in 
the  harbors  of 
Kiel  and  Cux- 
haven  and 
waited  long 
there  before 
oflering  even 
partial  battle 
to  the  British 
fleet.  This 
N\  a  s  wise 
strategy  but 
hardly  glori- 
ous. The  Brit- 
ish sneered 
at  the  re- 
fusal  of  the 
Germans  to 
fight  against 
overwhelming 
odds,  and 
Winston 


German  battleship  squadron  uith  its  fc:i.iiiii.iu  /.^ppAm 


Pliolu  by  Paul   rtioinpsoD 


142 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Churchill,  first  Lord  of  the  Admiralty,  fool- 
ishly assured  Parliament  that  "the  rats  would 
soon  be  dug  out  of  their  hole." 

It  was  a  braggart  metaphor  and  a  foolish 
one.  The  rats  came  out  of  the  hole  when 
they  had  a  chance  of  inflic 
ous  damage  upon  the  wait 
ish.  The  latter  for  their  part 
the  first  two  years  of  the  war 
to  follow  the  Germans  into 
treat.  The  British  strategy 
period  offered  no  parallel 
of  Farragut  in  our  Civ 
damned  the  torpedoes  and 
head  at  Mobile  and  New 
Orleans,  or  Dewey  when 


tmg  seri- 
ing  Brit- 
never  in 
sought 
their  re- 
o  f  this 
to  that 
War  who 
went    a- 


-_It  became  an  outpost  far  at  sea  from  which  sub- 
marines could  continually  menace  the  British 
fleet  and  guard  against  the  nearer  approach  of 
enemy  vessels  to  the  German  naval  bases, 
Cuxhaven,  Bremerhaven,  and  Kiel.  At  Kiel 
is  the  canal  connecting  the  North  Sea  with 
the  Baltic,  which  in  effect  multiplies  the 
German  North  Sea  fleet  by  two.  If  menace  d 
by  the  British  fleet  in  the  North  Sea  the  Ger- 
man ships  of  war  could  retire  through  this 
canal  to  the  Baltic.  Should  the  British 
attempt  to  pursue  through  the  difficult, 
tortuous,  and  well-mined  channels  of  the 
Skagerak  and  Cattegat  north  of  Denmark, 
the  German  fleet  could  slip  out  into  the  North 
Sea  and  ravage  the  British  coasts  before  their 


i 


The  deadly  British  destroyers.     A  i.ooo-ton  destroyer  in  a  heavy  sea 


he  pushed  at  night  into  the  harbor  of  Manila, 
careless  alike  of  the  strength  of  the  forts  or 
the  presence  of  the  mines  that  guarded  its 
entrance.  The  Admiralty  ordered  Sir  John 
Jellicoe,  commander  in-chief  of  the  home 
fleet,  the  day  war  was  declared  to  "find  the 
enemy,  capture  or  destroy  him."  The  Ad- 
miral had  no  trouble  in  finding  the  enemy, 
but  at  the  end  of  two  years  he  had  neither 
captured  nor  destroyed  him 

The  island  of  Heligoland,  which  stands 
thirty-two  miles  from  the  German  coast, 
was  sold  to  Germany  in  1890  by  Lord  Salisbury 
and  was  immediate  ly  made  by  its  new  posses- 
sors  a  fortress   as  impregnable  as  Gibraltar. 


defenders  could  return.  This  situation  en- 
abled the  Germans  to  plav  fast  and  loose  with 
the  British  and  avoid  any  serious  conflict  in 
the  North  Sea  until  the  latter  part  of  Janu- 
ary, 191 5. 

Prior  to  that  date  there  were  occasional 
losses  inflicted  upon  the  British  navy  by 
floating  mines  or  by  submarines.  Most  of 
these  may  be  ignored  in  this  rapid  narrative 
as  none  of  them  seriously  affected  the  strength 
of  the  British  navy  as  a  whole.  At  the  battle 
off  Heligoland  a  British  squadron  of  battle 
cruisers  and  destroyers  under  command  ot 
Rear-Admiral  Sir  David  Bcatry  fell  upon 
four  German  cruisers  and   a  number  of  de- 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


143 


stroyers  and 
sunk  three  of 
the  former.  It 
was  more  of  a 
massacre  than 
a  battle,  for  the 
Germans  were 
overwhehninjfK 
outnumbered. 
They  fought 
with  a  gal- 
lantry that  im- 
pressed even 
their  oppon- 
ents but  had 
no  chance.  A 
young  British 
officer  on  one 
of  Beatty's 
ships  in  de- 
scribing the 
action  said, 
"There  really 
was  nothing 
for  us  to  do  ex- 
cept shoot  the 
enemy  as  Pa 
shoots  pheas- 
ants." None 
the  less  London 
went  wild  over 
the  news  of 
this  first  vic- 
tory, much  as 
in  1898  all 
American  jour- 
nalism rushed 
out  extras  to 
tell  of  the  tri- 
umph of  Ad- 
miral Sampson 
when  he  cap- 
tured a  Spanish 
steamer,  the 
captain  of 
which,  not 
knowing  that 
v/ar  had  been 
declared,  took 
pains  to  bring 
his  ship  close  to 
the  American 
fleet,  in  order, 
as  he  said,  that 
he  "might  salute 
ships." 


^ 


sFi^ 


all   those   beautiful    war- 


.    i^  sinking  a  Gtrman  submarine 

The  Germans,  however, 
revenge.     On  the  morning 


quickly 
of  Sept 


had  their 
ember  izd 


144 


THE     NATIONS     AT    WAR 


three  British  cruisers, 
the  Aboukir,  Cressy,  and 
Hague  were  patrolling 
the  North  Sea  not  far 
from  the  Hook  of  Hol- 
land. They  were  all 
three  cruisers  of  the 
same  class;  12,000  tons 
each,  with  a  6-inch 
armor  belt  amidships, 
with  a  main  battery  of 
two  9.2  inch  guns  and 
twelve  6-inch,  and  a 
complement  of  755  men 
each.  Well  within  the 
range  of  action  of  the 
German  submarine  and 
torpedo  boats,  their  of- 
ficers may  well  be  sup- 
posed to  have  been  all 
vigilance.  Atsuchatime 
a  warship  is  all  eves. 

Nevertheless,  from 
none  of  these  ships  was 
a  warning  cry  raised 
until  a  German  sub- 
marine had  slipped  up 
to  within  a  mile,  fired 
her  torpedo,  and  sent 
the  Aboukir  to  her  de- 
struction. Gallantly, 
but  as  the  event  showed, 
rashly,  her  sister  cruisers 
rushed  to  the  aid  of  the 
stricken  ship,  but  were 
themselves  torpedoed 
by  the  same  unseen 
enemy  and  sent  to  the 
bottom.  Its  deadlv 
work  completed,  itself 
too  small  to  be  of  aid  in 
rescuing  any  of  the  sur- 
vivors, the  German  sub- 
marine U-g,  Captain 
Otto  Weddigen,  with 
26  men  aboard,  slipped 
away  as  secretly  as  it 
had  stolen  up  and 
reached  its  base  at  Wilhelmshaven  in  safety. 

At  the  moment  this  was  the  most  notable 
achievement  in  the  history  of  submarine  war- 
fare. Only  the  vaguest  details  of  the  exploit 
were  permitted  to  leak  out,  the  German  War 
Office  not  being  anxious  for  any  intelligence 
to  be  made  public  that  might  interfere  with 
the  success  of  subsequent  raids  of  the  same 


Zeppelin  over  London  spotted  by  a  searchlight 


sort,  while  the  British 
Admiralty  was  not  de- 
sirous of  giving  any  ad- 
ditional publicity  to  so 
disquietmg  an  illustra- 
tion of  the  helplessness 
of  even  armored  ships 
before  the  sinister  sub- 
marine. An  American 
newspaper,  the  New 
\  ork  //'orW,  secured  and 
published  the  following 
description  of  the  ex- 
ploit from  Captain  Wed- 
digen himself.  After  tell- 
ing of  his  voyage,  the 
duration  of  which  he 
conceals,  he  says  that 
when  eighteen  miles 
northwest  of  the  Hook 
of  Holland  he  sighted 
through  his  periscope 
three  British  cruisers. 

"I  submerged  com- 
pletely and  laid  my 
course  so  as  to  bring  up 
in  the  centre  of  the  trio, 
which  held  a  sort  of  tri- 
angular formation.  I 
could  see  their  gray- 
black  sides  riding  high 
over  the  water. 

"When  I  first  sighted 
them  they  were  near 
enough  for  torpedo 
work,  but  I  wanted  to 
make  my  aim  sure,  so  I 
went  down  and  in  on 
them.  I  had  taken  the 
position  of  the  three 
ships  before  submerging 
and  I  succeeded  in  get- 
ting another  flash 
through  my  periscope 
before  I  began  action. 
I  soon  reached  what  I 
regarded  as  a  good 
shooting  point. 

"Then  I  loosed  one  of  my  torpedoes  at  the 
middle  ship.  I  was  then  about  twelve  feet 
underwater  and  got  the  shot  off  in  good  shape, 
my  men  handling  the  boat  as  if  she  h?d  been 
a  skifF.  I  climbed  to  the  surface  to  get  a 
sight  through  my  tube  of  the  effect,  and  dis- 
covered that  the  shot  had  gone  straight  and 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


The  French  adaptation  of  the  war  Zeppelin 


true,  striking  the  ship,  which  I  learned  later 
was  the  Aboukir,  under  one  of  her  magazines, 
which  in  exploding  helped  the  torpedo's  work 
of  destruction. 

"There  was  a  fountain  of  water,  a  burst  of 
smoke,  a  flash  of  fire,  and  part  of  the  cruiser 
rose  in  the  air.  Then  I  heard  a  roar  and  felt 
reverberations  sent  through  the  water  by  the 
detonation.  She  had  been  broken  apart  and 
sank  in  a  few  minutes.  The  Ahoukir  had 
been  stricken  in  a  vital  spot  by  an  unseen  force 
that  made  the  blow  all  the  greater. 

"  Her  crew  were  brave,  and  even  with  death 
staring  them  in  the  face  kept  to  their  posts, 
read\   to  handle  their  useless  guns,  for  I  sub- 
merged at  once.      But  I  stayed  on  top  long 
enough   to   see   the   other   cruisers,   which    I 
learned  were  the   Cressy   and 
IJogue,   turn    and    steam    full 
speed    to    their    dying    sister, 
whose     plight     they 
could    not    under- 
stand, unless   it   had 
been    due    to   an    ac- 
cident. 

"The  ships  came 
on  a  mission  of  in- 
quiry and  rescue, 
for  many  of  the 
.■Jboukir's  crew  were 
row  in  the  water, 
the  order  having 
been  given,  'Each 
man  for  himself. ' 

"But     soon     t  h  c 
other     two     English 
cruisers     learned     what     hac 
brought    about    the    destruc- 
tion so  suddenly. 

"As  I  reached  my  torpedo 


Stern  view  ol  a  war  Zeppelin 


depth  I  sent  a  second  charge  at  the  nearer 
of  the  oncoming  vessels,  which  was  the  Hague. 
The  English  were  playing  my  game,  for  I 
had  scarcely  to  move  out  of  my  position, 
which  was  a  great  aid,  since  it  helped  to  keep 
me  from  detection. 

"On  board  my  little  boat  the  spirit  of  the 
German  navy  was  to  be  seen  in  its  best  form. 
With  enthusiasm  every  man  held  himself  in 
check  and  gave  attention  to  the  work  in  hand. 
"The  attack  on  the  Hague  went  true.     But 
this  time  I  did  not  have  the  advantageous  aid 
of  having  the   torpedo    detonate   under   the 
magazine,  so  for  twenty  minutes  the  Hague 
lay  wounded  and  helpless  on  the  surface  be- 
fore she  heaved,  half  turned  over,  and  sank. 
"By  this  time,  the  third  cruiser  knew,  of 
course,    that  the  enemy  was 
upon   her   and    she   sought    as 
best  she  could  to  defend  her- 
self.    She  loosed  her 
torpedo  defence  bat- 
teries  on   both    star- 
board  and   port,  and 
stood  her  ground  as 
if  more    anxious    to 
help  the  many   sail- 
ors who  were  in  the 
water  than   to  save 
herself.    In  common 
with  the  method  of 
defending    herself 
against   a   submarine 
attack,    she   steamed 
in    a    zigzag    course, 
and  this  made  it  nec- 
essary for  me  to  hold  my  tor- 
pedoes until  I  could  lay  a  true 
course  for  them,    which    also 
made  it  necessary  for  me  to 


146 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


H.  M.  S.  l.uii,  Licriif;  into  action 


get  nearer  to  the  Cressy.  I  had  come  to  the 
surface  for  a  view  and  saw  how  wildly  the 
Hre  was  being  sent  from  the  ship.  Small 
wonder  that  was  when  they  did  not  know- 
where  to  shoot,  although  one  shot  went  un- 
pleasantly near  us. 

"When  I  got  within  suitable  range  I  sent 
away  my  third  attack.  This  time  I  sent  a 
second  torpedo  after  the  first  to  make  the 
strike  doubly  certain.  My  crew  were  aiming 
like  sharpshooters  and  both  torpedoes  went 
to  their  buH'seye.  My  luck  was  with  me 
again,  for  the  enemy  was  made  useless  and  at 
once  began  sinking  by  her  head.  Then  she 
careened  far  over,  but  all  the  while  her  men 
stayed  at  the  guns  looking  for  their  invisible 
foe.  They  were  brave  and  true  to  their  coun- 
try's sea  traditions.  Then  she  eventually 
suffered    a    boiler   explosion    and    completely 


turned  turtle.  W'ith  her  keel  uppermost  she 
floated  until  the  air  got  out  from  under  her 
and  then  she  sank  with  a  loud  sound,  as  if 
from  a  creature  in  pain. 

"The  whole  affair  had  taken  less  than  one 
hour  from  the  time  of  shooting  off  the  first 
torpedo  until  the  Cressy  went  to  the  bottom. 
Not  one  of  the  three  had  been  able  to  use  any 
of  its  big  guns.  I  knew  the  wireless  of  the 
three  cruisers  had  been  calling  for  aid.  I 
was  still  quite  able  to  defend  myself,  but  I 
knew  that  news  of  the  disaster  would  call 
many  English  submarines  and  torpedo-boat 
destroyers,  so  having  done  my  appointed 
work  I  set  my  course  for  home." 

More  than  1,200  men  went  down  with  the 
three  cruisers — done  totheirdeath  by  a  handful 
of  but  26.     Thirty-six  thousand  tons  of  modern 


Sir  Jolin  Jcllicoe's  flagship  tlie  Iron  Duke 


,THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


147 


steel  warships,  packed  with  heavy  guns  and 
equipped  with  all  the  latest  devices  for  mari- 
time warfare,  were  destroyed  in  an  hour  by  a 
pigmy  craft  of  450  tons.  W'liat  wonder  tliat 
men  the  world  over  began  to  predict  the 
abandonment  even  of  the  dreadnoughts,  for 
all  their  weight  of  armor  on  their  sides  will 
avail  them  not  a  whit  against  attack  from 
below.  As  the  iron-clad  sides  ot  the  Mrrri- 
viac,  and  the  revolving  turret  of  the  little 
Monitor    relegated     to     the    scrapheap     the 


that  were  either  actively  at  war  or  allied  with 
some  of  the  belligerents,  were  absolutely 
closed  to  them.  In  neutral  ports  they  could 
stay  but  one  day  and  could  take  on  supplies 
of  coal  and  provisions  only  sufficient  to  take 
them  to  the  nearest  German  port.  At  one 
time  British,  French,  Japanese,  and  Russian 
warships  were  hunting  these  cruisers  which 
somehow  managed  to  keep  the  ocean,  renew 
their  stocks  of  coal,  and  sink  or  burn  British 
ships  in  every  one  of  the  seven  seas.     By 


The  French  battU  ' 

"wooden  walls  of  England,"  so  the  sub- 
marine, and  Its  scarcelv  less  sinister  coadjutor, 
the  airshi|),  ma\'  put  an  end  to  the  ^12,000.000 
floating  forts  of  steei  wliich  the  Powers  have 
been  building. 

Except  for  submarine  activities,  the  Ger- 
man navy  was  heard  from  chiefly  in  the 
earlier  months  of  the  war  h\'  the  work  of  its 
commerce  destroyers.  Of  these  four  were  at 
sea  when  war  was  declared :  the  Emden, 
Karlsruhe,  Prinz  Eitel,  and  Kronprinz  Fried- 
rick.  Of  these  the  first  two  alone  were  man- 
of-war  built,  the  others  were  converted 
merchantmen.  1  he  expedients  by  which  the 
Germans  kept  these  ships  at  sea  for  months 
after  the  declaration  of  war  showed  extraor- 
dinary cunning  and  executive  genius.  Most 
of  the  ports  of  the  world,  being  in  countries 


leading  the  French  fleet 


British  admission  the  Emden  had  sunk  twenty 
British  merchantmen  and  the  Karlsruhe 
thirteen  by  the  15th  of  October.  The  Emden 
had  been  particularly  adventurous.  Late  in 
October  she  astonished  the  world  by  rigging 
up  a  fourth  smokestack  to  disguise  her 
identity,  and  slipping  into  the  harbor  of 
Penang  under  a  Japanese  flag.  The  senti- 
nels on  the  parapet  were  completely  deceived 
and  ail  the  shipping  in  the  harbor  was  amazed 
when  the  strange  ship  without  anchoring  let 
slip  a  torpedo  which  sunk  a  French  destroyer, 
turned  her  guns  upon  the  Russian  cruiser  to 
her  complete  destruction,  and  turning  about, 
steamed  safely  out  of  the  harbor. 

But  the  seas  are  too  populous  for  the  career 
of  a  raider  to  be  a  long  one.  The  inevitable 
end  came  to  the  Emden  November  lorh,  when 


148 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


she  was  o-Cerhauled  by  the  AustraHan  cruiser, 
Sydney,  nearly  double  her  size  and  carrying 
eight  6-inch  guns  to  the  Emdens  ten  4- 
inch  guns.  The  battle  was  but  short,  a  run- 
ning one  so.  far  as  the  German  ship  was  con- 
cerned. After  two  of  her  smokestacks  had 
been  shot  away  and  the  flames  were  sweeping 
her  fore  and  aft  she  was  driven  ashore  on 
Cocos  Island  and  burned.  During  her  entire 
career   she   had   captured    and   destroyed    31 


the  war  than  did  Germany,  but  as  the  German 
fleet  remamed  in  hiding  behnid  the  battle- 
ments of  Heligoland  and  Kiel,  submarines 
could  not  reach  them.  The  British  fleet  in 
the  open  North  Sea,  and  the  thousands  ot 
British  merchantmen  going  back  and  forth  on 
all  the  lanes  of  ocean  travel  afl^orded  ample 
opportunity  for  the  activities  of  the  under- 
sea terrors  of  the  German  navy.  A  frightful 
feature  of  submarine  warfare  is  the  enormous 


Destruction  ot"  the  cruiser  Mainz.  This  photograph  was  taken  by  a  sailor  on  one  of  the  British  ships  engaged  in  the  tight 
off  Heligoland.  At  the  moment  the  picture  was  taken  the  two  funnels  of  the  Mainz  had  been  shot  away  and  the  flames  were  bursting 
through  her  deck.     \  few  minutes  later  the  doomed  vessel  sank,  still  defiantly  firing  to  the  last 


vessels,  sending  several  others  home  as  trans- 
ports for  prisoners  taken. 

The  other  German  commerce  destroyers 
met  similar  fates,  with  the  exception  of  one, 
the  Prin7  Eilrl,  which  amazed  the  nautical 
world  by  eluding  all  pursuers  and  slipping 
into  Hampton  Roads,  where  she  was  interned 
until  the  end  of  the  war. 

The  story  of  the  submarines  is  one  al- 
most for  a  volume  in  itself.  The  fruit  of 
their  activities  was  mainly  gathered  by  the 
Germans.  This  was  chiefly  due  to  the  fact 
that  the  British  shipping,  both  naval  and 
merchant,  being  at  sea  afforded  the  greater 
number  of  targets.  Both  Great  Britain  and 
France  had  more  submarines  at  the  opening  of 


proportion  of  the  death  list  to  the  total  num- 
bers on  the  attacked  record.  The  submarine 
can  save  no  one.  The  torpedoed  vessel  goes 
down  in  but  a  few  minutes.  As  a  result 
practically  all  its  crew  are  carried  down  to 
death.  We  have  seen  that  more  than  1,200 
men  went  down  with  the  three  cruisers  that 
Weddigen  sunk.  Later  475  out  of  544  men 
on  the  British  cruiser  Hazvk  were  sacrificed 
to  submarine  attack.  The  British  cruiser 
PallaJa  carried  down  practically  her  entire 
crew  of  558  men.  The  Formidable  was  sent 
down  with  600  men.  In  the  first  ten  weeks 
of  the  war  submarines  destroyed  seven 
British  cruisers  with  a  tonnage  of  48,370  and 
crews  numbering  3,397  of  whom  2,298  were 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


149 


lost — a  frightful  percentage   illustrating  the 
cleadliness  of  submarine  attack. 

Nor  did  the  German  submarines  limit  their 
acri\ities  to  attacks  upon  vessels  of  war. 
Early  in  the  war  the  British  declared  a  block- 
ade of  the  entire  German  coast,  including  the 
Baltic  ports.  The  form  of  this  blockade  was 
new  to  international  law.  A  lawful  blockade 
has  hitherto  been  held  to  requne  the  actual 
blocking  of  entrance  to  the  enemy's  ports  by 


many.  1  his  raised  one  of  the  new  questions 
of  international  law  of  which  this  war  has  been 
piolific  and  which  are  yet  to  be  determined. 
1  lie  Germans  met  this  policy  by  decreeing  the 
blockade  of  the  British  coasts,  although  they 
had  no  way  of  enforcing  it,  since  their  fleet 
could  not  venture  forth  in  the  presence  of  the 
enormously  superior  British  force.  They 
could  only  partially  enforce  it  by  the  use  of 
submarines,    and    with    these   vessels   in   the 


The  wreck 


^•.  Imc  li,  til  loir  In  I   ill  si  I  111  tion  off  Cocos  Island  by  riit-  Australian  Cruiser  Sydiuy,  had 
destroyed  2  warships  and  25  merchant  ships 


warships  stationed  outside  them.  A  block- 
ade of  this  sort  we  maintained  during  the 
Civil  \\  ar  with  the  utmost  rigor,  and  it  con- 
tributed largely  to  the  downfall  of  the  Con- 
federacy. Such  a  blockade,  however,  can 
never  again  be  maintained  owing  to  the  per- 
fection of  the  submarine.  A  fleet,  stationed 
off  the  mouth  of  a  harbor,  like  that  at  New 
York,  or  at  Charleston,  would  be  subject  at  all 
times  to  the  attacks  of  submarines  which 
would  be  held  safely  inside  the  harbor  until 
the  propitious  moment  for  delivering  their 
assaults.  Accordingly  the  British  under- 
took to  blockade  Germany  by  stationing  their 
ships  hundreds  of  miles  from  the  ports,  but  in 
the  regular  lanes  of  commerce  and  seizing  any 
ships  which  they  might  detect  hound  for  Ger- 


crowded  waters  immediately  surrounding  the 
British  Isles  they  inflicted  enormous  damage 
upon  British  shipping.  Neutral  ships  suf- 
fered as  well,  and  from  this  sprung  an  issue  be- 
tween Germany  and  the  United  States  which 
narrowly  escaped  leading  to  war  and  which 
did  result  in  materially  curbing  the  German 
submarine  activities. 

It  has  long  been  the  recognized  law  of 
nations  that  a  peaceful  merchantman,  sus- 
pected of  violating  a  blockade,  must  be 
boarded  by  an  officer  from  the  warship  which 
has  halted  her  and  if  her  character  as  a  block- 
ade runner  is  proved  she  must  either  be  taken 
with  all  her  passengers  and  crew  into  a 
home  port  of  her  captor  or  the  human  beings 
aboard    must    be    taken    off    and    provided 


ISO 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


THE     NA'llONS     AT    WAR 


with  a  sate  means  ot  escape  before  the  vessel 
is  sunk. 

The  Germans  insisted  that  observation  of 
this  rule  would  put  their  submarines  in 
danger.  They  are  fragile  vessels,  carrying  no 
heavy  guns,  readily  destroyed  by  either  ram- 
ming or  a  smgle  shot  from  a  gun  of  4-iiuh 
calibre,  sucii  as  many  of  the  British  merciiant- 
men  were  armed  with.  AccordingL},^  under 
the  orders  of  Admiral  \'on  Tirpitz,  chief  of  the 


matic  controversy  between  the  United  States 
and  Germany.  It  was  dragged  out  for  a  year, 
greatly  to  the  impatience  of  a  large  section  of 
the  American  people  who  demanded  swift  and 
punitive  action.  In  the  end,  however,  Ger- 
many promised  that  in  future  no  unarmed 
passenger  \essels  would  be  torpedoed  at  all, 
and  that  other  vessels  would  onl}-  be  de- 
stroyed after  due  warning  and  the  removal  of 
passengers  and  crew.      During  the  progress  of 


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Great  Britain  arrays  her  war  strength.     The  nav.il  k  \  u  u  at  Spitliead,  just  before  the  oiitlircak  of  the  \\  ar,  was  probably  the 

greatest  display  ot  armed  sea  power  ever  made 


German  nav\-,  the  German  torpedo  boats  be- 
gan sinkmg  merchantmen  either  without 
warning  or  with  at  most  a  very  brief  warning, 
and  the  allowance  of  perhaps  ten  rninutes  for 
the  captain  of  the  doomed  vessel  to  remove  his 
people  m  his  own  boats.  1  he  submarme,  ot 
course,  can  take  no  prisoners  aboard.  Re- 
peated instances  of  the  heavy  and  wanton 
sacrili«e  of  the  li\'es  of  peaceful,  and  often 
neutral,  citizens  caused  bitter  protest  on  the 
part  of  neutral  nations.  The  controversy 
reached  a  climax  by  the  torpedoing,  May  7, 
191 5,  without  warning,  of  the  great  British 
passenger  liner,  Lusitania,  by  which  1,392 
men  and  women,  many  of  them  of  national 
eminence,  lost  their  lives. 

Out  of  this  incident  grew  a  prolonged  diplo- 


the  diplomatic  discussion  several  submarine 
attacks  occurred  by  which  .A.merican  lives  were 
lost,  and  the  irritation  of  the  American  people 
reached  the  point  that  almost  forced  an  un- 
willing administration  into  war. 

.■\s  the  efficiency  of  the  submarine  became 
more  apparent  German  shipyards  were  rushed 
with  construction.  The  size  of  the  boats 
increased.  Their  cruising  area  was  so  ex- 
tended that  before  the  second  year  of  the  war 
submarines  voyaged  as  far  as  the  entrance  to 
the  Mediterranean  and  even  circumnavigated 
the  British  Isles.  There  was  no  part  of 
British  waters  closed  to  them,  and  the 
Admiralty  was  aghast  when  the  23.000-ton 
battleship  Audacious  was  sunk  in  the  Irish 
Sea    by    one    of   these    invisible    foes.     The 


152 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


h  ^k^^a 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


153 


British  were  no  laggards.  In  191  ^  one  of 
their  submarines  sailed  from  England,  made 
its  way  through  the  Mediterranean  and  the 
Dardanelles,  dived  under  five  rows  of  mines, 
and  sunk  the  Turkish  battleship  Mrrsudu'h. 
So  greatly  was  the  field  of  action  of  the  sub- 
marines extended  that  in  July,  1916,  one  of 
them,  the  Deutschland,  built  expressly  for 
carrying  cargo,  steamed  all  the  way  across  the 
Atlantic  and  safely  entered  Chesapeake  Bay 
despite  the  vigilance  of  British  and  Erencli 
ships  that  had  been  warned  of  her  coming. 
The  vessel  carried   1,500  tons  of  cargo,  and 


from  buoys,  which  were  so  equipped  with 
signals  that  the  thrust  of  the  nose  of  an  un- 
seen submarine  would  be  shown  along  the 
whole  line  of  the  net.  Once  entangled  the 
submarine's  case  was  hopeless.  Thereupon 
destroyers  and  small  cruisers  would  gather  at 
the  spot,  and  after  waiting  a  day  or  two  for 
the  ghastly  purpose  of  allowing  the  crew  of 
the  strangled  vessel  to  be  smothered  so  that 
no  resistance  or  explosion  could  be  caused, 
would  raise  the  submerged  vessel  and  tow  it 
to  a  British  dock  yard  to  be  refitted  for  further 
use  under  a  new  flag. 


South  Al'iican  tiikl  artillery  embarkinu  on  the  auxiliary  cruiser  Armadale  Castle 


enough    fuel  oil   for   a   voyage   of  twice   the 
distance. 

Eor  the  purpose  of  meeting  the  menace  of 
the  submarines,  the  I5ritish  employed  all  the 
known  weapons  at  their  command  such  as 
destroyers  and  mines,  and  enforced  vigilance 
on  the  part  of  trawlers  in  the  North  Sea. 
New  expedients  were  adopted.  Scouting 
aeroplanes,  hanging  over  the  surface  of  the 
water,  could  readil\'  detect  the  presence  of  a 
submarine  within  fifty  feet  of  the  surface  and 
by  signalling  to  watching  destroyers  and  tor- 
pedo boats  often  secure  its  destruction.  The 
most  deadly  defence  against  the  submarines, 
however,  were  the  great  steel  nets  hung  by  the 
British  at  various  points  in  the  English 
Channel   and   North   Sea.     These   nets  hung 


Among  the  first  of  the  true  naval  battles, 
involving  more  than  single  ships,  was  one 
fought  on  November  ist,  far  from  the  main 
scene  ot  hostilities.  When  war  broke  out 
Germany  had  a  consideral:)le  naval  force  in 
the  Pacific  which  it  was  the  immediate  pur- 
pose of  the  British  and  Japanese  navies  to 
destroy.  Early  in  the  war  the  German  and 
Japanese  squadrons  had  fought  an  incon- 
clusive battle  in  the  Bay  of  Ising-Tau,  and 
later  the  Japanese  had  sunk  the  German 
cruiser  JEolus  off  Honolulu.  But  the  main 
German  naval  force  in  Pacific  waters  was  a 
scattered  squadron,  including  the  Scharnhorst, 
Nurnberg,  Gneisenau,  and  Dresden,  so  widely 
dispersed  that  probably  no  two  of  the  fleet 
were  within  2,000  miles'  steaming  distance  of 


154 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Sinkini;  (if  the  Falaba.     The  South  Atrican  liner,  Falaha,  was  torpedoed  without  warning  and  sank  so  rapidly  that  many  pas- 
sengers had  no  time  to  take  to  the  hoats 


each  other.  The  way  in  which  these  ships 
were  concentrated,  though  the  Pacific  navies 
of  Japan  and  Great  Britain  were  scouring  the 
sea  in  pursuit  of  them,  showed  remarkable 
seamanship  and  an  extraordinary  efficiency 
on  the  part  of  the  German  bureau  by  which 
these  vessels  were  guided  safely  through  seas 
swarming  with  hostile  craft.  The  concen- 
tration was  successfully  effected,  and  when 
the  pursuing  British  squadron,  under  Rear- 
Admiral  Sir  Christopher  Craddock,  met  Vice- 
Admiral  Graf  von  Spee's  fleet  off  Coronel  on 
the  coast  of  Chili,  it  was  a  sorrv  meeting  for 
the  British.  The  German  squadron  was 
superior  in  weight  of  metal  and  in  speed.  In 
respect  to  their  heavy  batteries  only  they 
compared  thus: 


GERMAN 


BRITISH 


Sckarnhorst  }    Kight  8.2-mch;       Afonmouth  .    I'Ourteen  6-Inch 

Gneisenau      \  six  6-inch  guns  guns 

Good  ]1  dpi'  .   Two    9.2-mdi; 

Leipzig          1^,         .     ,  sixteen  6-inch 
...              -  I  en  4-mch  guns 
Nurnherg       ) 


Dreidcn   .     .     Twelve    4-inch 


guns 


guns 

C}nst,o:e  .     .    Two  6-inch ;  ten 
4-Inch  guns 

Olranio    .     .Merely       an 
armed  transport 


The  battle  was  fought  in  the  evening  be- 
tween si.\  and  seven  o'clock  in  rough  weather 
with  a  dri\ing  rain.  The  result  was  wholly 
disastrous  to  the  British;  the  Monmouth  was 
sunk,  the  Good  Hope  destroyed  by  an  explo- 
sion antl  fire,  and  the  other  ships,  sorely  crip- 


THE     NATIONS     AT     WAR 


155 


Admiral  Sir  David  Beatty,  who  commancled  the  British  battle  cruiser  squadron  at  the  battle  of  Jutland 


CopjTight  by  International  News  Service 


'  T  "^      i"Mf  •  •        '    ii  •JiilMTir imHIIFT       i 

3LUCHF.R" 

ng  with  about  800  men  clustered  on  her  sides  and  bottom.     She  floated  about  ten  minutes  after  this  photograph  was  taken 


I5« 


THE     NATIONS    Al"    WAR 


pled,   limped   away  to  the  nearest   ports  of     who  had  the  battleship  Canopus  and  the  two 
refuge.     The  German  ships  were  practically 
unhurt  and  escaped  without  loss  ot  life,  six 
men  on  the  Gneisenau  being  wounded. 

Twenty  British  ships  had  now  been  brought 
down  by  the  German  policy  of  attrition,  and 
without  commensurate  losses  by  the  enemy. 


battle  cruisers  Invincible  and  Inflexible,  besides 
five  cruisers  in  squadron.  Without  the  two 
battle  cruisers,  hoA'ever,  the  British  were  nor 
markedly  superior  to  the  Germans,  and  as 
these  were  at  first  concealed,  the  German.^ 
went  gallantly  into  action  believing  that  they 


Salonika's  harbor  thronged  witli  boats  of  many  nation.s.  The  port  of  Salonika  is  one  ot  the  busiest  in  the  world,  but  all  its 
activities  are  those  of  war.  Ships  of  all  the  allied  nations  come  and  go,  and  the  siirlacc  ol  the  bay  Is  literally  covered  with 
small  boats  of  every  conceivable  form 


For  the  moment  the  boasted  superiority  of 
the  British  navy  seemed  a  myth. 

But  the  world  did  not  have  long  to  wait  for 
news  that  the  British  had  taken  full  revenge 
upon  the  triumphant  Admiral  von  Spee.  On 
December  8th,  (;ff  the  Falkland  Islands,  an 
English  fleet  under  Vice-Admiral  Sir  Freder- 
ick Sturdee  overtook  the  victorious  Ger- 
mans and  utterly  destroyed  them,  sinking  the 
Scharnhorst,  Gneisenau,  Leipzig,  and  Nurn- 
herg.  ... 

Fhis  time  the  weight  of  metal  and  superi- 
ority of  speed  were  on  the  side  of  the  British 


had  at  least  a  fighting  chance.  But  the 
British  had  not  less  than  twenty  12-inch 
guns  for  which  the  Germans  had  no  match 
whatsoever  besides  four  of  7|-inch  and 
thirty-eight  of  6-inch.  The  Germans  were 
not  only  hopelessly  outclassed  in  weight  of 
metal,  but  they  were  quite  as  far  behind  in  the 
vital  matter  of  speed.  With  their  longer 
range,  the  British  could  batter  their  foes  to 
pieces  without  exposing  themselves,  and  did 
so.  The  Germans  fought  gamely  and  grimly, 
and  save  for  the  Dresden,  which  escaped,  went 
down  witli  colors  flying.  ■ 


THE    NATIONS    A 


WAR 


,    BATTLE 
^      SHIPS 


FIRST   PHASE 
J-45    P.M. 


,»,  BATTLE 

CRUISERS 


SECOMD  PHASE 
4-40 -P.M. 


BATTLE.    ^ 
SHIPS 


BATTLE*  i\ 
CRUI5ER5       • 


The  rtist  period  of  the 
war  ended  January  24, 
191:;,  wirh  a  disaster  to 
the  German  navy  in  the 
North|Sea.  On  that  day 
a  German  squadron  ot 
four  battle  cruisers,  the 
Hliiclur,  Moltke,  Seyd- 
litz,  and  Derflinger,  under 
lommand  of  Admiral 
Hibben,  was  steammi; 
west,  not  far  from  the 
coast  of  England.  Why 
the  ships  had  left  the 
snug  refuge  of  Heligoland 
to  bra\e  the  British  guard 
is  not  e.xplained.  Prob- 
ably it  was  hoped  that 
they  might  elude  British 
vigilance,  round  the 
northern  end  ot  Scotland, 
and  get  out  into  the  open 
sea  there  to  prey  on  the 
shipping  of  the  Allies  as 
had  the  Emden  and  the 
Karlsruhe.  If  this  had 
been  the  plan,  the  Ger- 
man authorities  bungled 
it  badly  by  attaching  to 
the  three  fast  ships  of  the 
squadron,  which  were 
capable  of  a  speed  of  26 
to  28  knots,  the  Bliichrr 
which  was  barely  able  to 
turn  off  24  knots. 

\\  hatever  the  purpose 
of  this  expedition  may 
have  been,  it  was  clearl\- 
not  to  tight,  for,  encount- 
ering a  British  squadron 
of  five  battle  cruisers 
near  the  English  coast 
the  Germans  instanrl\ 
rurned  to  flee. 

In  Admiral  Beatty's 
squadron  were  the  Lion, 
Tiger,  Princess  Royal, 
Nezv  Zealand,  and  In- 
domitable. The  Z./0/J  had 
13.5-inch  guns;  the  main 
battery  of  the  others  was 
of  12-inch  guns.  In  the 
German  fleet  only  the 
Derflingrr  mounted  guns 
of  12-inch    calibre.     According    to    statistics 


MAY- 3 1 51 
1916     . 


16000  YARDS 


o/battle: 
/cruisers 


^'high 

•        SEAS 
FLEET 


°\3 


BATTLE 

CRUISERS 

HINOENBCR6 

5UMK  ATTURN 


.INDEFATIGABLE"! 
V        y  QUEEN  MARy    J 
—  *    INViriRl  F  I 


SUNKAT 
)     TURN 


DERfrUNGtS 
,0      SUNK 
^o  BATTLE 
\o    CRUISERS 


THIRD  PHASE 
5-00   P.M. 


QUEEN  •-  ■ 

ELIZABETHS 


BA"TL£ 
CRUISERS' 


FOURTH  PHASE 
6-00  P.M. 


J  ("battle 

oVcRUISERS 


\ 


GRAND 
FLEET 


THREE  \l 

QUEEN  ^ 

CUiABETHS 


HIGH     SEAS 

■v    FLEET 


GERMA'N 

^  UNES'  OF  RETREAT 


FIFTH    PHASE 

NIGHT 

9-00  P.M. 


159 

German  squadron  as  23 
to  13 — a  heavv  disparit\' 
which  justified  Admiral 
I  libben  in  taking  to  flight. 
L  nfortunately  for  him 
the  disparity  in  speed  was 
(juite  as  much  in  favor  of 
the  British;  and  this  fact, 
added  to  the  longer  range 
of  their  guns,  put  the 
whole  German  fleet  at 
the  pursuer's  mercy, 
should  the  chase  last  long 
enough.  When  the  battle 
opened  the  Germans 
were  about  lOO  miles 
from  Heligoland,  with  the 


Diagram  showing  fleet  formatiun  in  Battle  oflFJutland 


the  gunfire  of  the  British  was  to  that  of  the     Bliicher  began. 


leading  British  ship,  the 
Lion,  about  9.6  miles 
astern  of  her  principal 
target  the  Bliicher. 

At  a  distance  of  nine 
and  a  half  miles  the  Brit- 
ish gunners,  themselves 
on  a  ship  tossing  on  the 
turbulent  waters  of  the 
North  Sea,  were  aiming 
their  shots  at  a  mark  not 
more  than  90  feet  wide, 
barely  discernible  on  the 
horizon  and  rushing 
through  the  water  at  the 
rate  of  more  than  25 
knots  an  hour.  It  seems 
incredible  that  under 
such  conditions  great 
damage  could  be  done, 
but  the  accounts  of  sur- 
\ivors  tell  how  deadK' 
was  the  marksmanship. 
One  German  bluejacket, 
saved  from  the  waves 
after  his  ship  had  gonj 
down,  told  to  his  captors 
this  story  of  the  fight  as 
seen  from  the  Bliicher: 

"We  saw  the  big  Eng- 
lish ships  steadily  over- 
hauling us.  We  knew 
that  as  we  had  more  than 
a  hundred  miles  to  sail 
we  would  never  get  away. 
The  first  British  ship 
opened  fire  at  something 
like  ten  miles'  range,  and  the  carnage  on  the 


i6o 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Entilisli  iliniiiblr  hallnon  at  niancrin'res 

"We  were  under  fire  first  in  the  action  and 
last.  Practically  every  English  ship  poured 
projectile  shell  upon  us.  It  was  awful.  I 
have  never  seen  such  gunnery  and  hope  that 
as  long  as  I  live  I  never  shall  again.  We 
could  not  fight  such  guns  as  the  English  ships 
had,  and  soon  we  had  no  guns  with  which  to 
fight  anything.  Our  decks  were  swept  by 
shot,  guns  were  smashed 
and  lying  in  all  directions, 
their  crews  wiped  out. 

"One  t|errible  shell 
from  a  big  gun — I  can- 
not forget  it — burst  right 
in  the  heart  of  the  ship 
and  killed  scores  of  men. 
It  fell  where  many  men 
had  collected,  killing 
practically  every  man. 

"We  all  had  our  float- 
ing equipment.  We  soon 
needed  it.  One  shell 
kdled  five  men  quite  close 
to  me,  and  it  was  only  a 
matter  of  time  when  no- 
thing living  would  have 
been  left  upon  the  ship. 

"When  we  knew  we 
were  beaten  and  that  our 
flag  was  not  to  come 
down   many  of  us  were 


praying  that  the  ship  would  go  down,  in 
order  that  no  more  men  might  be  killed. 

"We  would  rather  trust  to  the  English 
picking  us  up  after  our  ship  had  sunk  than  to 
missing  us  with  those  terrible  guns. 

"I  do  not  know  what  it  was  that  finished 
the  Bliichcr.  She  was  battered  to  pieces 
above  decks  and  had  many  holes.  I  heard 
she  was  struck  by  a  torpedo  and  went  down 
after  that.  If  that  is  true,  we  have  to  thank 
the  ship  that  torpedoed  us  for  saving  hun- 
dreds of  lives. 

"When  the  ship  was  going  down,  I  jumped 
clear  and  tried  to  swim  ofi^.  When  she  turned 
over  some  caught  hold  of  some  part  of  her, 
but  she  sank  from  under  us.  It  was  ter- 
ribly cold  in  the  water.  There  were  wounded 
men  and  dead  men.  Terribly  shattered 
swimmers  shouting  for  help  were  all  around 
me. 

"My  mind  is  confused  after  that.  I  was 
picked  up  b\-  a  small  English  warship,  as  I 
hoped.  The  men  were  very  kind.  We  were 
warmed,  fed  and  clothed." 

The  final  stroke  to  the  Bliirlu-r  was  de- 
livered by  a  torpedo,  though  she  had  been  put 
out  of  action  before  that  coup  de  grace.  Of 
her  crew  of  835,  more  than  700  were  lost,  and 
it  is  a  striking  evidence  of  the  inadequacy  of 
the  German  gunfire  that  the  loss  on  the  Lion 
which  led  the  British  pursuers  was  only  eleven 
wounded.  None  were  killed  in  the  British 
fleet.     In  this  disparity  of  losses  the  action 


Armored  car  of  a  dirigible  balloon.  Showing  the  rt-lative  size  of  the  car,  which  will 
accommodate  more  than  a  dozen  men.  It  is  armed  with  machine  guns  and  bomb- 
dropping  devices 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


i6i 


was  somewliat  rem- 
iniscent of  the  battle 
of  Santiago  in  the 
Spanish  -  American 
\\  ar.  But  any  com- 
parison of  the  two 
battles  rebounds 
very  greatly  to  the 
superior  credit  of 
the  American  navy. 
For  at  Santiago  the 
pursuit  was  not 
checked  nor  the  fires 
slackened  until  the 
last  Spanish  ship  lay 

a  helpless,  smoking  wreck  on  the  coast  of 
Cuba.  But  in  this  North  Sea  battle  three  of 
the  German  ships  escaped,  despite  the  superior 
strength  and  speed  of  their  British  pursuers 

It   was   eighteen    months   before 
great    rival    fleets    met    again    in 
Meanwhile  the  naval  activities  of 
the  Allies  were  confined  mainly  to 
some    single    ship    actions    in    the 
Mediterranean    and   Adriatic,   and 
to  the  determined  but  abortive  ef- 
fort of  the  British  fleet 
to    pass    the    Dardan- 
elles.   The  former  were 
of  no  material  bearing 
on  the  progress  of  the 
war,  and  of  the  latter 
an     account     will     be 
published    in    another 
chapter. 


the    two 
combat. 


The  latest  product  of  the  Krupp  works  is  a  specially  designed  gun  for 
defense  against  the  enemy  of  the  clouds 


A  !•  rcnch  triplane 

May  31,  1916,  the  advance  ship  of  a  British 
fleet,  cruising  ofi^  Jutland,  came  into  contact 
with  a  German  fleet  and  there  followed  a 
fierce  battle  lasting  all  day  and  part  of  the 
night,  the  outcome  of  which  was  verv  nearly 
a  draw.  The  Germans  at  first  claimed  com- 
plete victory,  and  for  that  matter,  still  do. 
1  he  British  at  the  outset  were  inclined  to 
admit,  if  not  defeat,  at  least  such  heavy  losses 
as  to  indicate  the  equality  of  the  German  sea 
fighters  \yith  what  had  been  supposed  to  be 
the  irresistible  British  navy.  Later,  how- 
ever, knowledge  of  the  e.xtent  of  the  German 
losses  led  the  British  to  claim  that  the  victory 
rested  with  them. 

Ihe  day  was  hazy,  the  surface  of  the  sea 
calm,  afl^ording  every  opportunity  for  skil- 
ful marksmanship.  The  British  fleet,  ex- 
tending over  an  area  of  nearly  300  square 
miles,  was  sweeping  across  the  North  Sea 
toward  the  Skagerack  in  pursuance  of 
the  policy  of  patroling  those  waters 
periodically.  In  advance  was  the  light 
squadron  of  battle  cruisers  and  light 
cruisers  under  Admiral  Sir  David 
Beatty.  In  advance  of  the  cruisers,  in 
accordance  with  British  naval  tactics, 
was  a  line  of  steam  trawlers  and  de- 
stroyers. At  about  3:45  p.  M.  a  cloud 
of  smoke  in  the  distance  told  of  the 
coming  of  a  fleet  which  could  be  only 
the  Germans.  It  was,  in  fact,  the  full 
German  High  Seas  Fleet  under  com- 
mand of  Admiral  Scheer.  These  vessels 
were  cruising  in  the  hope  of  encounter- 
ing some  detached  British  force  which 
they  might  attack  and  cut  off^  before 
the  full  fleet  of  Admiral  Jellicoe  could 
come  up.  The  situation  seemed  to 
afl^ord  them  this  opportunity,  for  that 
branch    of    the    fleet    under    Admiral 


1 62 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Beatty  was  distinctly  inferior  to  the  German 
force,  while  Admiral  Jellicoe  was  far  in  the 
rear  with  the  dreadnoujihts.  Whatever 
the  odds  might  be,  on  either  side  the  men 
were  eager  for  the  fray.  Beatty  with  his 
swift  battle  cruisers  gave  no  heed  to  the 
slowness  of  the  battleships  behind  him, 
but  plunged  into  the  attack  which  the  Ger- 


the  battle  cruisers,  with  their  lighter  arma- 
ment and  with  their  weight  of  armor  sacrificed 
to  speed,  were  in  this  case  opposed  to  battle- 
ships. The  result  proved  the  contention  of 
na\al  experts  the  world  over  that  the  battle- 
ship is  absolutely  essential  to  the  strength  of 
the  navy.  Even  while  the  battle  was  in 
progress  a  debate  was  going  on  in  the  Ameri- 


London  watching  for  aerial  foes  by  nisht 


mans  for  their  part  invited  and  cheerfully 
sustamed.  Such  was  the  mist  that  the  hos- 
tile lines  v/ere  not  visible  at  a  distance  of 
more  than  six  miles.  This  was  at  the  outset 
greatly  m  favor  of  the  Germans,  who  had  then' 
heavier  vessels,  with  their  bigger  guns,  in  ac- 
tion at  the  very  first.  As  a  result  of  this,  al- 
though possibly  in  the  case  of  the  Invincible', 
because  of  a  mine,  three  of  Beatty 's  ships,  the 
Indefatigable,  the  Invincible,  and  the  Queen 
Mary,  were  sunk  within  twenty  minutes  of 
the  beginning  of  the  action.  An  additional 
handicap  to  the  British  was  that  while  their 
foes  were  enveloped  in  mist,  they  themselves 
were  outside  ot  the  bank  of  fog  and  clearly 
outlined  against  a  yellowish  sky.     Moreover, 


can  Congress  o\er  the  (juestion  whether  in 
our  future  navy  battleships  should  not  be 
wholly  replaced  by  battle  cruisers.  The 
news  from  the  North  Sea  caused  an  abrupt 
abandonment  of  this  theory. 

While  the  main  execution  done  among  the 
principal  ships  on  either  side  in  this  battle 
appears  to  have  been  due  to  the  fire  of  great 
guns,  the  destroyers  and  torpedo  boats  were 
busy  from  the  start.  Ihe  duty  of  these  little 
craft  was  twofold:  namely,  to  attack  the 
enemies'  capital  ships  and  to  protect  their 
own  from  like  attack.  It  would  appear, 
however,  that  the  value  of  the  torpedo  in  a 
pitched  battle  between  fleets  has  been  largely 
overestimated.     This  war  has  demonstrated 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


163 


sufficiently  its  ckadliness  when  launclied 
from  an  unseen  submarine, or,  for  tliat  matter, 
from  any  unexpected  quarter.  But  in  a 
general  action  the  capital  ships  already  en- 
gaged, warned  of  the  presence  of  torpedoes 
and  protected  in  part  by  their  watchful 
destroyers,  do  not  appear  to  be  gravely  men- 
aced by  tor- 
pedo attacks. 
Only  one  of 
the  B  r  i  t  i  s  ii 
dreadnoughts, 
the  M  ar I  - 
borough,  ap- 
pears to  have 
been  torpe- 
doed, and  she 
survived  the 
shock.  The 
British  claim 
that  two  of 
the  German 
ships  were 
sunk  by  tor- 
pedoes, but 
this  claim  the 
Germans  con- 
tradict. 

When  the 
battle  had 
been  in  pro- 
gress for  al- 
most two 
hours,  with 
the  odds 
strongly  in 
favor  of  the 
Germans,  the 
British  Grand 
Fleet  came 
into  action 
and  the  tideof 
battle  turned. 

An  account 
of  this  battle,  the  greatest  in  nistory,  evi 
dently  written  in  collaboration  by  several 
British  naval  officers  who  were  present  during 
the  action,  summarizes  very  clearly  the 
strategy  emplo\  ed  and  is  made  the  more  un- 
derstandable by  the  diagrams  on  page  159, 
which  were  prepared  by  the  naval  e.xpert 
of  the  Scientific  Jnierican: 

"First  Ph.\se,  3:45  p.  m.,  May  31. — 
Beatty's  battle  cruisers,  consisting  of  the 
Lion,  Princess  Royal,  Queen  Mary,  Tiger, 
Inflexible,   Indomitable,    Invincible,    Indefati- 


Count  Zeppelin,  at  the  left,  with  Colonel  Schmicdcke  and  Professor  Heigescll 
I 


gable,  and  Aczc  Z.ealand,  were  on  a  southeast- 
erly course,  followed  at  about  two  miles'  dis- 
tance by  the  four  Queen  Elizabeths. 

"Enemy  light  cruisers  were  sighted  and 
shortly  afterward  the  head  of  the  German 
battle  cruiser  squadron,  consisting  of  the 
new  cruiser  Ilindcnburg,   the   Seydlitz,   Der~ 

flinger,  Lut- 
zozv,  Moltke, 
and  possibly 
the  Salamis. 

"Beatty  at 
once  began 
firing  at  a 
range  of about 
20,000  yards 
(12  miles), 
which  short- 
ened to  16,000 
yards  (9 
miles)  as  the 
fleets  closed. 
The  Germans 
could  see  the 
British  dis- 
tinctly out- 
lined against 
the  light-3-el- 
low  sky.  The 
Germans, 
covered  by  a 
haze,  could  be 
verv  indis- 
tinctly made 
out  by  our 
gunners. 

"The  Queen 
Elizabeths 
opened  fire 
one  after  an- 
other, as  they 
came  within 
range.  The 
German  bat- 
tle cruisers  turned  to  port  and  drew  away 
to  about  20,000  yards. 

"Second  Phase,  4:40  p.  m. — A  destroj-er 
screen  then  appeared  beyond  the  Cjerman 
battle  cruisers.  The  whole  German  High 
Seas  Heet  could  be  seen  approaching  on  the 
northeastern  horizon  in  three  divisions,  com- 
ing to  the  support  of  their  battle  cruisers. 

"The  German  battle  cruisers  now  turned 
right  round  16  points  and  took  station  in  front 
of  the  battleships  of  the  High  Fleet. 

"Beatty  with  his  battle  cruisers  and  sup- 


164 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


porting  battleships,  therefore,  had  before 
him  the  whole  of  the  German  battle  fleet, 
and  Jellicoe  was  still  some  distance  away. 

"The  opposing  fleets  were  now  moving 
parallel  to  one  anotlier  m  opposite  directions, 
and  but  for  a  master  maneuver  on  the  part  of 
Beatty    the     British    advance    ships    would 


ble  also  were  lost  at  the  turning  point,  where, 
of  course,  the  High  Seas  Fleet  concentrated 
their  fire. 

"A  little  earlier,  as  the  German  battle 
cruisers  were  turning,  the  Queen  Elizabeths 
had  in  smiilar  manner  concentrated  their  fire 
on   the   turnmg  point   and   destroyed   a   new 


British  sailors,  their  cruiser  sunk,  are  picked  up  by  one  of  their  own  submarines 


have  been  cut  off  from  Jellicoe's  grand  fleet. 
In  order  to  avoid  this  and  at  the  same  time 
prepare  the  way  so  that  Jellicoe  might  en- 
velop his  adversary,  Beatty  immediately 
also  turned  right  round  16  points  so  as  to 
bring  his  ships  parallel  to  the  German  battle 
cruisers  and  facing  in  the  same  direction. 

"As  soon  as  he  was  round  he  increased  to 
full  speed  to  get  ahead  of  the  Germans  and 
take  up  a  tactical  position  in  advance  of  their 
line.  He  was  able  to  do  this,  owing  to  the 
superior  speed  of  our  battle  cruisers. 

"Just  before  the  turning  point  was  reached, 
the  Indefatigable  sank,  probably  from  striking 
a  mine,  and  the  Queen  Mary  and  the  Invinci- 


German    battle   cruiser,   believed    to   be   the 
Hindenburg. 

"Beatty  had  now  got  round  and  headed 
away  with  the  loss  of  three  ships,  racing  par- 
allel to  the  German  battle  cruisers.  The 
Queen  Elizabeths  followed  behind,  engaging 
the  main  High  Seas  Fleet. 

SIX    SHIPS    ATTACKED    THE    WARSPITE 

"Third  Phase,  5  p.  m.— The  Queen  Eliza- 
beths now  turned  short  to  port  16  points  in 
order  to  follow  Beatty.  The  Jl'arspite 
jammed  her  steering  gear,  failed  to  get  around, 
and  drew  the  fire  of  six  of  the  enemy,  who 
closed  in  upon  her. 


THE    NATIONS 


England's  strong  man.     p:arl  Kitchener,  Secretary  of  State  for  W  jr  in  ilu   British  cabinet,  was  drowned  off  the  Orkney 
Islands  at  2  a.  m.  on  June  6th  when  the  cruiser  Hampshire  foundered  after  being  torpedoed  or  through  striking  a  mine 


i66 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


"I  am  not  surprised  that  the  Germans 
claim  her  as  a  loss,  since  on  paper  she  ought 
to  have  been  lost,  but  as  a  matter  of  fact, 
though  repeatedly  straddled  by  shellfire 
with  the  water  boiling  up  all  around  her,  she 
was  not  seriously  hit  and  was  able  to  sink 
one  of  her  opponents.     Her  captam  recovered 


were  suffered.  They  had  the  speed  over 
their  opponents  h\  fullv  four  knots,  and  were 
able  to  draw  awa\  from  part  of  the  long  line 
of  German  battleships,  which  almost  filled 
up  the  horizon. 

"At   this  time  the  Queen   Elizabeths  were 
steadilv  firing  at  the  flashes  of  German  guns 


Crater  of  a  ZcpiJclm  bomb  in  Paris 


control  of  the  vessel,  brought  her  around,  and 
followed  her  consorts. 

"In  the  meantime  the  Barham  Valiant  and 
Malaya  turned  short  so  as  to  avoid  the  danger 
spot  where  the  Queen  Mary  and  the  Invinci- 
ble had  been  lost,  and  for  an  hour,  until 
Jellicoe  arrived,  fought  a  delaying  action 
against  the  High  Seas  Fleet. 

"The  IVarspite  joined  them  at  about 
5:15  o'clock,  and  all  four  ships  were  so  suc- 
cessfully maneuvered  in  order  to  upset  the 
spotting  corrections  of  their  opponents  that 
no    hits    of   a    seriously    disabling   character 


at  a  range  which  varied  between  12,000  and 
15,000  yards,  especially  against  those  ships 
which  were  nearest  them.  The  Germans  were 
enveloped  in  a  mist  and  only  smoke  and 
flashes  were  visible. 

"By  5:45  half  of  the  High  Seas  Fleet  had 
left  out  of  range,  and  the  Queen  Elizabeths 
were  steaming  fast  to  join  hands  with  Jellicoe. 

"  I  must  now  return  to  Beatty's  battle 
cruisers.  They  had  succeeded  in  outflanking 
the  German  battle  cruisers,  which  w  ere,  there- 
fore, obliged  to  turn  a  full  right  angle  to  star- 
board to  avoid  being  headed. 


TllK     NATIONS     AT     WAR 


167 


"Heavy  fi<2;liring  was  renewid  lit-rwctn  the 
opposing  battle  cruiser  squad  ions,  during 
which  the  Dcrflinger  was  sunk;  but  toward  6 
o'clock  the  German  fire  slackened  very  con- 
siderably, showing  that  Beatry's  battle 
cruisers  and  the  Queen  Elizabeths  had  in- 
Hicted  serious  damage  on  their  immediate 
opponents. 

jhi.licoe's  fleet  arrived 

"Fourth  Phase,  6  p.  m. — The  Grand  Fleet 
was  new  in  sight  and  coming  up  fast  in  three 
d  i  recti ons 
(divisions: ). 
The  Queen 
Elizabeths  a.\- 
tered  their 
course  four 
points  to  the 
starboard 
and  drew  in 
toward  the 
enemy  to  al- 
low Jellicoe 
room  to  de- 
p  1  o  y  into 
line. 

''The 
Grand  Fleet 
was  p  e  r  - 
fectly  ma- 
ll e  u  v  e  r  e  d 
and  the  very 
difficult  op- 
eration of 
d  e  p  1  o  \'  1  n  g 
between  the 
battle  cruis- 
ers and  the 
Queen  Eliza- 
beths was 
perfectly 
timed. 

"Jellicoe 
came  up,  fell 
in  behind 
B  e  a  1 1  y  '  s 
cruisers,  and,  followed  by  the  damaged  but 
still  serviceable  Queen  Elizabeths,  steamed 
right  across  the  head  of  the  German  fleet. 

"The  first  of  the  ships  to  come  into  action 
were  the  Revenue  and  the  Royal  Oak  with  their 
15-inch  guns,  and  the  Jgincourt,  which  fired 
from  her  seven  turrets  with  the  speed  almost 
of  a  Maxim  gun. 

1  he  whole  British  fleet  had  now   become 


concentrated.  They  had  been  perfectlv  ma- 
neuvered, so  as  to  'cross  the  T' of  the  High 
Seas  Fleet  and.  indeed,  only  decent  light  was 
necessary  to  complete  their  work  of  destroying 
the  Germans  in  detail.  The  light  did  im- 
prove for  a  few  minutes  and  the  conditions 
were  favorable  to  the  British  fleet,  which  was 
now  in  line  approximatel\  north  and  south 
across  the  head  of  tile  Germans, 

"During  the  few  minutes  of  good  light 
Jellicoe  smashed  up  the  first  three  German 
ships,  but  the  mist  came  down,  visibility  sud- 
denly failed, 
and  the  de- 
feated High 
Seas  Fleet 
was  able  to 
draw  off  in 
ragged  di- 
visions. 

' ' Fifth 
Phase, 
Night.  — 
The  Ger- 
mans were 
followed  b\' 
the  British, 
who  still  had 
them    envel- 

0  p  e  d  b  e  - 
tween  Jelli- 
coe on  the 
west,  Beatty 
on  the  north, 
and     E  %■  a  n 

1  h  o  m  a  s 
w  1 1  h  his 
three  Queen 
Elizabeths  on 
the  south. 
The  [far- 
spite  had 
been  sent 
back  to  her 
base. 

"During 
the  night 
our  torpedo-boat  destroyers  heavily  attacked 
the  German  ships,  and  although  thev  lost 
seriously  themselves,  succeeded  in  sinking 
two  ol  the  enem\-. 

"Coordination  of  the  units  of  the  fleet  was 
practically  impossible  to  keep  un^  and  the 
Germans  discovered  by  the  rays  of  their 
searchlights  the  three  Queen  Elizabeths  not 
more  than  4,000  yards  away.     Unfortunately 


Kin);  and  (Juecn  pay  last  tribute  to  Kitchener 


i68 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


they  were  tlien  able  to  escape  between  these     NolZ\d^uoyen    .::::::::.      ^^m! 

Nestor  (destroyer) 


battleships  and  Jellicoe,  since  we  were  not 
able  to  fire,  as  our  own  destroyers  were  in  the 
way. 

"So  ended  the  Jutland  Battle,  which  was 
fought  as  had  been  planned  and  was  very 
nearly  a  great  success.  It  was  spoiled  by  the 
unfavorable  weather  conditions,  especially  at 


*950. 


100 

100 
100 


*Not   listed   in  last   British 
register 

TOTALS 

Battle  cruisers 63,000 2,550 

Armored  cruisers 41.700 2,163 

Destroyers 9,400 900 


Fourteen  ships. 


114,100 ..    5,613 


The  German  Fleet  whose  officers  have  often  toasted  "The  Day."     Meaning  the  day  when  it  should  dispute  with  Cjreat  Britain 

for  the  overlordship  ot  the  seas 


the  critical  moment,  when  the  whole  British 
fleet  was  concentrated  and  engaged  in  crush- 
ing the  head  of  the  German  line. 

"It  was  an  action  on  our  part  of  big  guns, 
except,  of  course,  for  the  destroyer  work, 
since  at  a  very  early  stage  our  big  ships 
ceased  to  feel  any  anxiety  from  the  German 
destroyers.  The  German  small  craft  were 
rounded  up  by  their  British  opponents  and 
soon  ceased  to  count  as  an  organized  body." 

LOSSES, IN  NORTH  SEA  BATTLE  OFF  JUTLAND 
BRITISH 
Name  Tonnage  Personnel 

[Few  Survivors] 


GERMAN 

Name  Tonnage  Personnel 

[Of  whom  many  were  saved) 

Pommern  (battleship) 13,200 729 

Wiishailen  (cruiser) 5,600 (estimated)  450 

Fuiufnloh  (cruiser) 2,715 264 

Elhinn  (cruiser) 5,000 (estimated)  450 

Six  destroyers  (reported) 6,000 (estimated)  600 

[REPORTED  BY  BRITISH,  BUT  NOT  ADMITTED  BY  GERMANSl 

Weslfaleii  (dreadnought) 18.901) 963 

Deriiinner  (battle  cruiser) 26,600 (estimated)  1,200 

One  submarine 1,000 (estimated)  40 

TOTALS 

(ADMITTED) 


Queen  Mary  (battle  cruiser) 27,000. 


Indefatigable  (battle  cruiser) 

Invincible  (battle  cruiser) 

Defense  (armored  cruiser) .... 
Warrior  (armored  cruiser) .... 
Black  Prince  (armored  cruiser). 

Tipperary  (destroyer) 

Turbulent  (destroyer) 

Shark  (destroyer) 

Sparrowhawk  (destroyer) 

Ardent  (destroyer) 


18,750. 
17,250. 
14,600. 
13,550. 
13,550. 
1,850. 
1.850. 

950. 

950. 

950. 


1,000 
800 
750 
755 
704 
704 
1.50 
1.50 
1(X) 
1(X) 
1(K) 


Battleship 13,200. 

Cruisers 13,315 . 

Destroyers 6,0(K) . 

Ten  ships 32,515. 


729 

1,164 

600 

2,493 


[INCLUDING    GERMAN    LOSSES   REPORTED    BY    THE    BRITISH] 

Two  battleships 32,100 1,692 

Four  cruisers 39.915 2.364 

Six  destroyers 6,000 bOO 

One  submarine 1,000 40 


Thirteen  ships . 


79,015 4.696 


THE    NATIONS     AT    WAR 


169 


tween  decks  there  are  pneumatic  rafts,  but 
there  is  scant  time  to  put  on  a  belt  or  launch  a 
raft  when  the  steel  vessel  loaded  with  guns 
and  armor  begins  to  go  down.  Practically 
every  man  goes  down  with  the  ship,  and  this 
fact    was    demonstrated    at    the    Battle    of 

fact  that  the  British  ships  w'ent  down  during     Jutland. 

action,  whereas  many  of  the  German  ships.  Both   the    British    and    the   Germans   con- 


The  heavy  loss  of  life  m  this  battle  is  a  mat- 
ter that  deserves  attention.  In  the  subjoined 
table  it  will  be  noticed  that  practically  the 
entire  personnel  ot  many  British  ships  is  re- 
ported as  lost,  while  on  the  German  ships 
manv  were  saved.     This  is  partly  due  to  the 


^r.--; 


Sb-- 


llic  liiitish  Home  Flttt  steaming  through  tlie  Soltiit.       I'rom  lelt  tu  lulit,  tile  Kmg  Gt'orgf,  ThuniL-rir,  Munarch  and  Cun^Ucrur 


when  crippled,  were  able  to  pull  out  of  the 
zone  of  hre  and  save  many  of  their  people. 
Some  were  even  in  friendly  home  waters  be- 
fore actually  going  down.  In  modern  naval 
warfare  the  loss  on  a  sunken  vessel  is  apt  to  be 
complete.  One  reason  for  this  is  that  a  ship 
seldom  pulls  out  of  action  until  she  is  actually 
sinking.  Their  structure  is  so  complicated 
that  her  commander  may  not  know  that  she  is 
about  to  sink  until  she  is  just  on  the  verge  of 
taking  the  plunge.  As  long  as  she  is  afloat  at 
all  she  is  a  factor  in  the  battle.  A  single 
happily  placed  shot  from  a  sinking  ship  might 
be  the  blow  to  turn  the  tide  of  battle  and  to 
settle  the  destinies  of  the  nations  at  war.  As 
long  as  a  ship  floats  it  fights,  its  men  remain  in 
the  turrets,  the  fire  rooms,  and  at  the  guns — 
all  hard  places  to  get  out  of  when  the  vessel 
begins  to  careen.  She  can  carry  no  boats  or 
rafts  on  her  deck  for  the  blast  of  the  guns 
would  blow  them  to  flinders.  The  men  in 
action  are  provided  with   life  belts,  and  be- 


cealed  for  some  time  the  extent  of  their 
losses.  Admiral  Jellicoe's  formal  report, 
dated  July  6th,  expressly  declares  it  inex- 
pedient to  make  the  loss  of  the  personnel  and 
the  extent  of  the  damage  inflicted  public. 
The  following  table,  however,  agrees  with  the 
official  statement  of  losses,  except  the  loss  of 
life,  which  is  estimated.  The  German  losses 
claimed  by  the  British,  but  denied  bv  the 
Germans,  are  included  in  a  separate  table. 

Both  sides  earnestly  claimed  the  victory. 
The  Germans  insisted  that  the  weight  of 
British  vessels  sunk  and  the  toll  of  death 
paid  in  Jellicoe's  fleet  far  exceeded  the  losses 
of  their  own;  the  British  denied  heavier  losses 
and  pointed  out  that  their  enemies  were 
forced  to  seek  the  shelter  of  their  naval 
bases  while  Jellicoe's  ships  continued  their 
ceaseless  patrol  of  the  North  Sea.  There 
was  justification  for  both  claims.  But  the 
real,  vital,  essential  point  is  that  after  the 
engagement  the  British  naval  power  was  still 


170 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


overwhelm- 
ing, its  con- 
trol of  the 
seas  still  un- 
shattered, 
and  its 
blockade  of 
German 
ports  so  un- 
relentmg  as 
to  arouse 
bitter  com- 
plaints from 
the  block- 
aded nation 
which  de- 
nounced  the 
British  for 
trying  to 
starve  the 
women  and 
children  of 
an  entire 
nation. 

There  was 

of  course  no  justification  for  this  complaint. 
The  blockade  is  a  legitimate  weapon  of  war, 
despite  the  fact  that  it  necessarily  causes  suf- 


a  submarine,  showing  the  pilot's  wheel 


fering  and 
privation  to 
non  combat- 
ants. In  no 
war  has  the 
blockade 
been  so  mer- 
cilessly ap- 
plied as  in 
ourownCivil 
War,  when 
the  South 
was  Iiterall\ 
starved  into 
subjection. 
The  appeals 
made  by  the 
Germans  for 
milk  for  their 
babies  in  this 
war  were 
parall  e  1  e  d 
then  by  the 
cry  of  the 
fever- ridden 


South  for  quinine.  But  special  vigilance 
was  exerted  to  prevent  that  medicine  from 
being  shipped  over  the  border. 


"•^L^ 


Copyright  by  Underwuod  .\  I  n^l^^^^ 1 

German  merchant  submarine  Deutschland  lying  in  Chesapeake  Bay  before  returning  across  the  Atlantic.  In  spite  of 
the  vigilance  of  English  patrols  the  Deutschland  has  made  two  trips  to  the  United  States,  landing  once  at  Baltimore  and 
once  at  New  London 


THE     NAIIONS    AT     WAR 


171 


L'l.,, 


-J-*- 


•!^~-:. _"  — ^t^ 


11.  M.  S.  Oufi-n  F.lizahrth,  perhaps  the  most  famous  watship  in  the  wotlcl,  bomhatding  Cape  Helles  (Gallipoh)   to  cover  the 
landing  of  the  AMied  forces.     She  was  the  first  battleship  to  carry  fifteen-inch  guns 


CHRONOLOGY  OF  NAVAL  EVENTS  TO  AUGUST  i,  19 16 


(Naval  occurrences  connected  with  tlie  lirirish  expedition  to 
the  Dardanelles  will  be  found  enumerated  in  the  chronology 
attached  to  Chapter  V.) 

^lugust  6.     British  cruiser  .-imphion  sunk  by  a  mine.     First 
loss  of  the  war  to  the  British  navy. 

August  <).     German  ships  Brcslau  and  Goeben  enter  the  Dar- 
danelles. 


August  17. 

August  21. 

August  24. 

August  27. 
Crosse. 


Krench  sink  Cerman  cruiser  in  Adriatic. 
I'rcnch  and  British  ships  bombard  Cattaro. 
Japanese  bombard  Tsing-Fau. 
British  ship  IlighHyfr  sinks  Kaiser  ll'ilhrlm  der 


August  28.     Battle  off  Heligoland. 

Sepleiiiber  22.  Cressy,  Aboukir,  and  Ilogue  sunk  by  (jerman 
submarine. 

October  i6.  British  cruiser  Ilawkc  sunk  bv  (urman  submarine- 
U-9. 

October  17.  British  squadron,  led  by  the  Undaunted,  sinks  four 
German  destroyers  off  the  Dutch  coast.  British  fleet  bom- 
bards (jerman  forces  at  Nieuport. 

October  ig.  British  and  Japanese  vessels  begin  attack  on 
German  colony  at  Tsing-Tau.  Bombardment  of  Cattaro 
begun  by  French  navy. 

October  2$.  Japanese  sink  the  German  cruiser  Aeolus  off 
Honolulu. 


October  zq.  German  raider  Emden  enters  Penang  harbor  and 
sinks  Russian  cruiser  Jempchug. 

October -^o.  Russian  and  Turkish  fleets  in  battle  in  the  Black 
Sea.     British  cruiser  Hermes  sunk  off  Dover. 

November  i.  German  s(|uadron  under  Admiral  von  Spec 
defeats  British  squadron  under  Rear-Admiral  Cradock  off 
Coronel,  Chili. 

November -i.  British  cnn'ser  Minerva  bombards  Akabah, 
Arabia,  and  sailors  occupy  the  town. 

November  10.  .Australian  cruiser  Sydney  sinks  the  Emden, 
which  had  destroyed  more  than  )?5.ooo,ooo  worth  of  British 
ships. 

November  14.  First  news  of  disabling  of  the  British  super- 
dreadnaught  .ludac\ous  on  October  i7th  off  the  Irish  Coast. 
\  essel  subsecjuently  restored  to  service. 

November  17.  Russian  Black  Sea  fleet  attacks  Trebizond. 
German  squadron  bombards  Libau. 

November  26.  British  battleship  Bulwark  blown  up  in  the 
Thames.     F.xplosion  probably  accidental. 

December  8.  British  squadron  under  V'ice-Admiral  Sturdee 
defeats  (lerman  squadron  under  Admiral  von  Spee  off  the 
Falkland  Islands. 

December  10.  German  submarine  raid  on  Dover  repulsed  by 
the  forts. 


172 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


December  n.  British  submarine  5-1 1  diving  under  five 
rows  of  mines  sinks  TufKish  bartleship  Messudieh  in  the 
Dardanelles. 
December  i6.  German  warship  shells  the  British  coast 
towns  of  Scarborough,  Hartlepool,  and  Whitby;  about 
I20  persons  killed  and  550  wounded. 
December  22.     Allied  fleets  shell  German  positions  along  the 

Belgian  coasts. 
December  26.     British  make  naval  and  air  attack  on  German 

fleet  without  important  results. 
January  I.     British     battleship    Formidable    torpedoed     and 

sunk  in  English  Channel;  six  hundred  men  lost. 
January  24.  British  squadron  under  Vice-Admiral  Beatty 
defeats  German  squadron  in  North  Sea.  German  battle 
cruiser  Bliicher  sunk,  two  other  German  battle  cruisers 
damaged.  British  battle  cruisers  Lion  and  Tiger  damaged. 
February  8.     Russian  destroyers  sink  more  than  fifty  enemy 

sailing  vessels  m  the  Black  Sea. 
February  18.     German     proclamation    declaring    the    waters 
around  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  a  war  zone  which  neutral 
ships   may   enter   at   their  own   risk  takes  efl^ect.     United 
States  protests  against  the  decree;  205  merchant  Craft  and 
six  neutral  were  sunk  under  the  decree  before  August  ist, 
with  a  loss  of  63  lives  including  two  .Americans. 
February  ig.     Tension  between  the  United  States  and  Great 
Britain  because  of  use  of  American  flag  on  Lusitania  and 
other  ships  becomes  acute. 
April  6.     German  submarine  caught  in  a  steel  net  off  Dover. 
Pirst  recorded  success  of  this  method  of  meeting  submarine 
peril. 
April  7.     German    converted    cruiser   Priiiz    Eitel   Friederlch 
enters  Hampton  Roads  and  is  interned  until  the  end  of  the 
war. 
April  15.     Table  published  in  London  claims  that  the  Allies 
have  sunk,  captured,  or  detained   543    ships  belonging  to 
Germany  and  her  Allies,  while  265  ships  belonging  to  the 
Allies  have  been  taken  or  destroyed  by  the  Teutons. 
April  26.     French   cruiser   Leon   Gamhetta  torpedoed    in    the 

Strait  of  Otranto,  552  men  lost. 
May  I.     Cunarder  Lusiiania  sails  from  New  York.     German 
Embassy  at  Washington  publishes  an  advertisement  stat- 
ing that  "  travelers  sailing  in  the  war  zone  on  ships  of  Great 
Britain  or  her  .Allies  do  so  at  their  own  great  risk." 
May  7.     Lusiiania   is   sunk   ten   miles   ofl^  the   Old    Head    of 
Kinsale,  Ireland,  by  torpedoes  from  a  (ierman  submarine. 
1,154,  including  many  women  and  children,  are  drowned  or 
killed  by  the  explosion. 
May  17.     The  British  admiralty  announces  that  460,628  tons 
of  British  shipping,  other  than  warships,  have  been  sunk  or 
captured  by  the  German  navy  since  the  beginning  of  the 
war,  with   1,556  persons  killed;  that  the  German  tonnage 
sunk  or  captured  is  314,465  with  no  lives  lost. 
June  15.     .An  ofiicial  announcement  states  the  total  loss  in 
the  British  navy  up  to  May  31st  was  13,547  oflBcers  and  men. 
Up  to  August  I,  1915,  according  to  Senate  Document  3  of 
the  Sixty-fourth  Congress,  the  allied  navies  bad  lost  a  total  ot 
71   warships,   with    a    tonnage    of  326,855.     Of  these   Great 
Britain  had  lost  42  ships  of  254,494  ton.s — 8   battleships,   3 
armored  cruisers,  4  protected  cruisers,  4  light  cruisers,  and  24 
smaller  craft;  France,  12  ships  of  28,027  tons;  Russia,  6  ships 
of  21,775  tons;  Japan,  7  ships  of  4,801  tons;  and  Italy,  4  ships 
of  17,758  tons.     Germany,  Austria,  and  Turkey  had  lost  89 
ships,  with  a  tonnage  of  262,791.     Of  these  Germany  had  lost 
69  ships  of  283,904  tons — i  battle  cruiser,  5  armored  cruisers, 
10  protected   cruisers,  3    light   cruisers,  and    50  smaller   and 
auxiliary  craft;  Austria,  7  ships  of  7,397. tons,  and  Turkey  13 
ships  of  16,490  tons. 

Up  to  the  same  date  German  submarines  sank  205  merchant 
craft  belonging  to  the  Allies,  and  59  neutrals  with  a  total 
sacrifice  of  1,641  non-combatant  lives. 

In  the  second  year  of  the  war  official  records  in  regard  to  the 
losses  of  submarines  and  auxiliary  cruisers  are  incomplete, 
and  transports  are  not  scheduled  as  warships.     In  this  year 


the  .Allies  lost  41   ships  with  a  tonnage  of  202,600,  and  the 

Central  Empires  33  ships,  with  a  tonnage  of  125,120.     (jreat 

Britain's  loss  was  34  ships — 2  battleships,  3   battle  cruisers, 

3  armored  cruisers,  7  protected  cruisers,  2  light  cruisers,  and 

17  smaller  and  auxiliary  craft,  with  a  total  of  195,900  tons. 

Germany's  loss  was  26  ships — 4  battleships,  1   battle  cruiser, 

6  protected  cruisers,  and  15  smaller  craft  and  auxiliaries,  with  a 

total  of  1 14,620  tons. 

August  8.  German  squadron  repulsed  while  attempting  to 
menace  Riga.  Petrograd  reports  that  nine  battleships  and 
twelve  cruisers  were  driven  oflF. 

November  17.  Twenty-five  British  submarines  pass  North 
Sea  into  the  Baltic. 

December  30.  Austrian  squadrons  defeated  with  the  loss  of 
two  destroyers  by  Italian  ships  off^  Durazzo,  .Albania. 

January  g.  Loss  of  British  battleship  King  Edward  1  II  by 
contact  with  mine  is  announced. 

February  i.  German  prize  crew  bring  in  British  steamer 
Appam  to  Hampton  Roads,  with  passengers  and  crews  of 
six  other  British  merchantmen  captured  by  the  auxiliary 
cruiser  Mowe  or  Rm>n,  ship  declared  British  prize  by  United 
States  Court  in  July,  1916. 

February  13.  French  Government  admits  the  loss  of  the 
cruiser  Admiral  Charner  by  submarine  ofl^  the  Syrian  coast. 

February  27.  French  transport  Provence  sunk  by  submarine 
in  Mediterranean  with  a  loss  of  3,100  marines  and  troops. 

February  27.  British  steamer  Maloja,  en  route  for  India, 
strikes  mine  near  Dover  and  loses  more  than  150  lives  in 
passengers  and  crew. 

March  5.  German  Admiralty  announces  the  safe  arrival  at 
Wilhelmshaven  of  auxiliary  cruiser  Motce  after  having  de- 
stroyed or  captured  fifteen  merchant  craft  of  the  Allies. 

March  24.  British  Channel  steamer  Sussex  torpedoed  by 
German  submarine  with  the  death  of  more  than  fifty  pas- 
sengers. 

April  25.  German  battle  cruiser  squadron  with  submarines 
and  Zeppelins  attack  Lowestoft  and  Yarmouth,  northeast  of 
London.  This  is  supposed  to  be  in  conjunction  with  the 
Sinn-Fein  revolt  in  Dublin  and  the  landing  of  Sir  Roger 
Casement  on  the  Irish  coast. 

April  zy.  British  battleship  Russell  sunk  by  mine  in  the 
Mediterranean. 

May  31.  British  and  German  naval  engagement  off  the  coast 
of  Denmark,  North  Sea.  British  admit  the  loss  of  six  large 
cruisers  and  eight  destroyers,  the  Germans  a  battleship, 
a  battle  cruiser,  four  light  cruisers,  and  five  destroyers; 
9,500  lives  are  lost. 

June  5.  British  cruiser  Hampshire  sunk  by  a  mine  off  the 
Orkney  Lslands  on  her  way  to  Russia.  Lord  Kitchener, 
Secretary  for  War,  and  his  stafl^  are  lost,  together  with  all 
except  twelve  of  the  crew. 

Juneg.     Italian    Admiralty    announces    that    the    transport 
Principe  Umberlo  has  been  sunk  with  large  loss  ot  lite  by  a 
submarine  in  the  Adriatic. 
July  6.     Turkish  Midullu,  formerly  German  cruiser  Breslau, 

sinks  Russian  transport  by  use  of  Russian  flag. 
July  <).     German  merchant  submarine  Deutschland  arrives  at 

Baltimore  after  unique  transatlantic  voyage. 
July  10.     Turkish  Midullu  and  Sultan  Seliin,  the  latter  form- 
erly German  cruiser  Goeben,  sink  four  Russian  transports 
and  bombard  Caucasus  coast. 
July  12.     German  submarine  shells  Seaham  Harbor,  on  Eng- 
lish east  coast. 
Jtily  15.     Italian  destroyer  Impetuoso  sunk  by  .Austrian  sub- 
marine in  the  Adriatic. 

July  22.  German  flotilla  of  torpedo-boat  destroyers  escape 
after  running  fight  with  British  patrols  off  Holland  and 
attempt  to  raid  the  Thames  mouth.     Both  sides  claim  hits. 

During  the  second  year  of  the  war  German  and  Austrian 
submarines  sunk  518  merchant  craft  of  which  72  were  neutral. 
The  lives  of  983  non-combatants  were  sacrificed. 


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174 


THE    NATIONS     AT    WAR 


C  H  A  1'  T  E  R     V  I 


DEADLOCK.   IN   FRANCE   AND  BELGIUM — ^THE  HARDSHIPS  OF  THE  TRENCHES 

A  CHRISTMAS  TRUCE BATTLE  OF  NEUVE  CHAPELLE THE  LABYRINTH — 

ASPHYXIATING     GAS    AND     LIQUID     FIRE — YPRES     AND     THE     RIVER     YSER 


A  Jap.iiHsc 


ROBABLY  never  in 
the  history  of  man- 
kind lias  more  of  hu- 
man agony,  human 
sacrifice,  cold  hrutal- 
ity,  and  warm  sym- 
pathy been  com- 
pressed into  so  small 
a  space  of  time  and 
place  as  in  the  year 
191 5  and  in  that  part 
of  France  and  Belgium 
in  which  the  warring 
armies  strove  for  the 
mastery. 

It  was  a  year  of  con- 
stant battling  with 
utterly  inconclusive  results.  Men  fell  by 
the  tens  of  thousands  to  gain  a  score  of  yards 
on  the  enemx's  lines.  The  capture  of  a 
trench  was  proclaimed  as  a  magnificent  vic- 
tory, though  the  defenders  had  but  retreated 
to  another  work  twentv-five  yards  in  its  rear. 
Now  one  belligerent  and  then  the  other  as- 
sumed the  offensive,  but  all  that  was  sought 
was  merely  to  pierce  the  lines  of  the  foe. 
The  Germans  had  about  abandoned  their 
hope  of  reaching  Paris,  and  the  French  crv, 
"On  to  Berlin,"  was  stilled.  The  world  as  a 
whole  was  beginning  to  speak  of  the  great  war 
as  a  draw. 

Throughout  the  bitter  months  of  the 
winter  of  191 5  the  lines  of  the  belligerents 
extended  for  five  hundred  miles  from  the 
British  Channel  to  the  Vosges  Mountains, 
seldom  more  than  two  hundred  yards  apart, 
often  hardly  half  that.  By  the  map  it  was 
500  miles,  but  the  actual  extent  of  the 
trenches  was  many  times  as  much.  At  one 
point  which  came  to  be  known  as  the  Lab\- 
rinth,  and  at  which  later  in  the  year  a  blood\' 
battle  was  fought,  there  were  more  than  200 
miles  of  trenches  between   two  points  sepa- 


rated only  by  twelve  miles  in  a  direct  line. 
Of  this  entire  500  miles  of  battle  front  fifty 
were  held  by  the  Belgians  and  the  British, 
the  remainder  by  the  French.  But  the  sec- 
tion held  by  the  two  former  nations  was  that 
in  which  was  the  most  savage  fighting  during 
the  opening  months  of  1915  and  in  which 
natural  conditions  made  the  daily  life  of  the 
soldiers  most  difficult  to  bear.  Sir  John 
French  in  his  official  report  said  of  the  suffer- 
ings of  the  men  in  Flanders,  "The  men  have 
been  called  upon  to  stand  for  many  hours 
together  almost  up  to  their  waists  in  bitterly 
cold  water  only  separated  by  one  or  two  hun- 
dred yards  from  a  most  vigilant  enem\'." 
But  that  is  the  passionless  and  restrained 
description  of  trench  life  by  a  great  com- 
mander. This  extract  from  the  description 
given  in  a  letter  from  one  of  the  soldiers  who 
had  suffered  months  of  that  existence  gives  a 
more  graphic  picture  of  what  it  really  meant. 

"Take  a  cold,  damp  cellar  and  flood  it 
with  some  three  to  six  inches  of  almost 
ice-cold  mud;  at  a  height  of  five  feet  from 
the  floor  stretch  a  tangle  of  wires;  turn  an 
electric  current  into  the  wires  and  let  the 
voltage  be  so  heavy  that  every  wire  will  be  as 
deadl\  as  a  third  rail. 

"Now  blow  out  the  light,  crawl  to  the 
middle  of  the  floor  in  the  darkness,  and  stand 
erect,  trusting  to  blind  luck  that  your  head 
won't  touch  the  wire.  These  charged  wires, 
in  the  darkness,  represent  the  invisible  deadly 
trails  of  the  bullets  that  fl\'  over  your  head  in 
the  trenches. 

"Of  course,  if  you  want  to  be  safe  in  the 
cellar  vou  can  keep  your  head  down,  but  if  you 
did  that  in  the  trenches  \'ou  would  be  neglect- 
ing your  duty.  It  is  your  duty,  for  instance, 
to  fire  eight  bullets  an  hour  if  on  guard. 
Watchful  eyes  of  officers  will  discover  whether 
you  are  shooting  into  the  air  or  whether  you 


175 


176 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


llrhiiiil    rile    I'  riiich    liiu-s   in   tlir 
making  hiniself  comtortable  in   th 
wash  tiav 


open  air 


are  firing  with  your  aim  fixed  on  the  enemy's 
trenches,  and  a  good  sentinel  is  supposed  to 
raise  his  head  above  the  trench  every  ten 
minutes  to  see  what  is  going  on  outside." 

This  writer,  Phil  Rader  by  name,  a  young 
San  Franciscan  who  had  enlisted  in  the 
French  Foreign  Legion,  was  prolific  of  graphic 
sketches  of  life  in  the  trenches.  His  descrip- 
tion of  a  Cliristmas 
truce  and  its  abrupt 
end  throws  a  bright 
light  on  the  psychology 
of  war: 


"  For  twenty  days 
we  had  faced  that  strip 
of  land,  forty-five  feet 
wide,  between  our 
trench  and  that  of  the 
Germans,  that  terrible 
No  Man's  Land,  dotted 
with  dead  bodies,  criss- 
crossed by  tangled 
masses  of  barbed  wire. 
That  little  strip  of  land 
was  as  wide  and  as 
deep  and  as  full  of 
death  as  the  Atlantic 
Ocean;  as  uncrossable 
as  the  spaces  between 
stars;  as  terrible  as 
human  hate.     And  the 


sunshine  of  the  bright 
Christmas  morning  fell  on 
it  as  brightly  as  if  it  were 
a  lover's  lane  or  the  aisle  in 
some  grand  cathedral. 

"I    don't  know   how  the 
truce    began     in     other 
trenches,   but    in   our    hole 
Nadeem began  it- — Nadeem, 
a  Turk,   who   believes  that 
Mohammed  and  not  Christ 
was    the    Prophet  of   God. 
The  sunshine  of  the  morn- 
ing seemed   to  get    into 
Nadeem's  blood.      He  was 
only    an    enthusiastic   boy, 
always     childishly     happy, 
and    when    we    noticed,    at 
the  regular  morning  shoot- 
ing hour,  that  the  German 
trenches  were  silent  Nadeem 
began  to  make  a  joke  of  it. 
He  drew  a  target  on  a  board, 
fastened  it  on  a  pole,  and  stuck  it  above  the 
trench,  shouting  to  the  Germans: 
"'See  how  well  you  can  shoot.' 
"Within    a    minute    the    target    had    been 
bulls'-eyed.     Nadeem  pulled  it  down,  pasted 
little   bits   of  white  paper  where   shots   had 
struck,  and  held  it  up  again  so  that  the  Ger- 
mans  could    see   their   score.     In    doing    so, 
Nadeem's  head  appeared  above  the  trench, 


photograph  shows  the  camp  en 


Borrowed  IVoni  the  Dark  Ages.     An    adaptation  of  the  old  • 

pounds  of  sudden  death  ?oor  40  yards 


It  will  hurl  a  few 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


177 


and  we  heard  him  talking 
across  the  No  Man's  Land. 
Thoughtlessly  I  raised  my 
head,  too.  Other  men  did 
thesame.  Wesawhundreds 
of  German  heads  appearing. 
Shouts  filled  the  air.  What 
miracle  had  happened? 
Men  laughed  and  cheered. 
There  was  Christmas  light 
in  our  eyes  and  I  know 
there  were  Christmas  tears 
in  mine. 

"There  were  smiles, 
smiles,  smiles,  where  in  days 
before  there  had  been  only 
rifle-barrels.  The  terror  of 
No  Man's  Land  fell  awav. 
The  sounds  of  happy  voices 
filled  the  air.  We  were  all 
unhumanh'  happy  for  that 
one  glorious  instant — Eng- 
lish, Portuguese,  Americans, 
and  even  Nadeem,  the  Turk 
we  had  been,  cavemen  as  we  were,  the  awful 
ness  of  war  had  not  filled  the  corners  of  our 
hearts  where  love  and  Christmas  live.  I  think 
Nadeem  was  first  to  sense  what  had  happened. 
He  suddenly  jumped  out  of  the  trench  and 
began  waving  his  hands  and  cheering.  The 
hatred  of  war  had  been  suddenly  withdrawn 
and  it  left  a  \acuum  in  which  we  human  beings 


Clinlus  iiiiiM  lit-  clean  when  jioing  into  hattlc.  The  last  thine  the  Foreign 
Legion  did  before  taking  its  post  was  to  put  on  clean  underclothes  and  shirts.  Every 
soldier  has  a  horror  of  tetanus 


md 


savages  as 


rushed  uito  contact  with  each  (jtiier.  ^  ou 
felt  their  handshakes — double  handshakes, 
with   both  hands — in  your  heart. 

"Nadeem  couldn't  measure  human  nature 
unerruigly.  He  had  been  the  first  to  feel 
the  lioliday  spuic  of  Christmas  Day,  but,  on 
this  day  after  Christmas,  he  failed  to  sense 
the  grimness  of  war  that  had  fallen  over  the 
trenches  during  the  niglit.  Earlv  in  the 
inormng  he  jumped  out 
of  the  trench  and  began 
waving  his  hands  again. 
Jolin  Street,  an  Ameri- 
can, who  had  been  an 
evangelist  in  St.  Louis, 
jumped  out  with  him, 
and  began  to  shout  a 
morning  greeting  to  a 
German  he  had  made 
friends  with  the  day 
before. 

"There  was  a  sudden 
rattle  of  rifle-fire  and 
Street  fell  dead,  with  a 
bullet  through  his  head. 
The  sun  was  shining 
down  again  on  a  world 
g-one  mad.  " 


Shooting  death  from  a  gas  pipe.       Where  the  hostile  trenches  arc  only  a  few  yards  apart, 
grenades  are  thrown  back  and   forth  b\   hand 


Though  the  French 
had  lost  heavily  in  the 
fighting  of  the  fa'i 
months,  thev  had  so  far 


178 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


recuperated  by  January'  as  to  begin  efforts 
all  along  their  lines  to  accomplish  what  was 
destined  to  be  their  one  compelling  purpose 
for  the  next  eighteen  months,  namely,  to 
break  the  German  line  and  force  the  invaders 
out  of  France.  Their  first  serious  attack 
was  made  in  the  neighborhood  of  Soissons. 
There  the  elements  combined  for  their  un- 
doing.    At  the  very  crucial  moment  heavy 


Their  light  ha^   oum.   out   turuvcr.       BlinJcJ    l'ri_in:li   bulJicrs  LiCuiuJ    by    a  iiursL- 


rains  caused  a  flood  which  washed  away 
bridges  upon  which  the  French  depended  for 
their  supplies.  The  Germans  rushed  reen- 
forcements  to  that  point  and  the  French  were 
forced  back  with  heavy  loss,  even  sacrificing 
some  of  the  territory  that  had  been  gained  in 
the  Battle  of  the  Aisne.  But  the  retreat  was 
soon  checked,  and  for  nearly  a  month  the 
armies  at  that  point  contented  themselves 
with  holding  each  other  rigidly  to  the  line  of 
their  trenches. 

For  a  time  activity  shifted  to  that  parr  of 


the  line  which  extended  between  Rheims  and 
the  Argonne.  Both  the  French  and  the 
Germans  made  efforts  to  break  their  enemy's 
front  at  various  points  in  Champagne.  The 
Germans  were  trying  to  force  the  Allies  to 
weaken  their  line  in  Flanders  in  order  that 
b\-  a  sudden  thrust  the  soldiers  of  the  Kaiser 
might  get  around  French's  left  flank  and  cut 
him  off  from  the  sea.  In  this  they  failed 
utterly.  General  Joffre 
proving  quite  capable  of 
taking  care  of  his  centre 
without  depleting  the  left 
flank.  But  JoflVe  in  his 
turn  attacked  savagely  in 
the  neighborhood  of  Arras, 
at  Lens,  and  about  La 
Bassee.  The  purposes  of 
the  French  attack  here  were 
twofold.  Success  would 
have  given  them  control 
of  important  railroad  com- 
munications held  by  the 
Germans  and  would  fur- 
thermore have  driven  the 
enemy  from  the  highly  im- 
portant mining  district  sur- 
rounding Lens  from  which 
they  were  drawing  huge 
supplies  of  coal.  The  fight- 
ing in  this  neighborhood 
lasted  niore  than  a  month, 
and  in  it  not  less  than  500,000 
men  were  involved.  But  it 
was  at  best,  indecisive. 
Beginning  the  last  of  Jan- 
uary, March  found  the  lines 
of  the  enemies  occupying 
practically  the  same  relative 
positions.  But  during  this 
period  not  merely  were 
hundreds  of  thousands  of 
men  put  out  of  action,  but 
the  French  villages,  so 
beautiful  and  contented  in  times  of  peace, 
were  reduced  to  mere  heaps  of  ruins. 

Much  of  the  country  is  a  level  plain  trav- 
ersed b\  sluggish  rivers.  A  watcher  in  the 
da\s  before  the  war  could  see  all  about  him 
clos.ely  built  little  French  villages,  separated 
one  from  the  other  by  ten  to  fifteen  miles  of 
smiling  countryside.  The  French  farmer  in 
the  main  does  not  live  on  his  farm  as  do  the 
Americans.  As  a  result  one  sees  but  few 
farmhouses,  but  groups  of  villages  sur- 
rounded by  miles  of  fertile  country.      But  by 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


179 


March   of    191 5   the  vil!ai2;es 
were    smouldering  heaps 
of  ruined  masonry  and 
the  fields  were 
scarred    in   every 
direction      by 
trenches,  and 
plentifully  dot- 


( iravLs  TiKir kt d  w it  1 


ted  with  the 
crosses  that 
mark  the  rest- 
ing places  of 
the  quiet  dead. 
Early  in 
March  the  most 
important  battle  of 
the  year  was  fought 
in  and  about  the  little 
French  town  of  Neuve 
Chapelle  by  the  British  forces. 
The  battle  raged  for  three  days, 
beginning  on  the  tenth,  and  in  it  the  British 
lost  I2,8ii  men  of  whom  nearly  2,500  were 
killed.  The  German  losses  were  heavier, 
and  as  the  result  of  the  battle  very  material 
gains  were  made  by  the  British  on  that  part 
of  the  battleline.  The  main  point  of  attack 
was  the  closely  built  stone  village  which 
was  held  by  the  Germans  who,  in 
the  ponderous  farmhouses 
and  behind  the  stone  walls 
of  the  orchard  which 
flanked  thevillageon 
either  side,  had  es 
tablished  machine 
guns  and  heavy 
batteries  of 
field  artillery. 
The  assailants 
were  handi- 
capped from 
the  outset  by 
a  heavy  mist 
which  per- 
sisted through- 
out the  three 
days  ot  fighting. 
Sir  Douglas  Haig 
and  Sir  Horace 
Smith-Dorrien,  two 
British  leaders  des 
tined  to  win  great  rep-  X  'A 
utations  during  the  course 
of  the  war,  led  the  attack. 
For  the  first  time  in  serious 
fighting  on  this  section  of  the 


The  i-n<l  of  :i  l;iithliil  frieiul 


battleline thepicturesque  East 
Indian    troops   of  Great 
Britain  were  brought 
into  action  and  con- 
due  r  e  d     t  h  e  m  - 
selves  with  great 
gallantry.      In 
numbers  en- 
gaged   and    in 
losses  the  bat- 
tle   of    Neuve 
Chapelle 
closely     resem- 
bled   that  of 
Waterloo.        But 
V  Waterloo    was   the 

*  turning  point  of  a  war 
—Neuve  Chapelle  only 
an  incident  m  an  intermin- 
able deadlock. 
As  was  the  case  with  so  much  of 
the  fighting  in  France,  this  attack  was  made  not 
so  much  because  of  any  special  strategic  value 
attaching  to  the  ground  immediately  fought 
for,  but  for  its  effect  on  the  campaign  in  the 
East.  In  eastern  Prussia  at  this  moment 
the  Russians  were  just  beginning  to  recover 
from  the  crushing  blow  delivered  by 
\'on  Hindenburg  at  the  Masurian 
),  Lakes    and     had     themselves 

)./   to         again  resumed    the   ofFen- 
/7'Xi';..  swe.      Accordingly    the 

French  and  the  Brit- 
ish   on  the  western 
battleline  were  at- 
tacking at  every 
point     in    order 
that  they  might 
keep    the   Ger- 
mans   in    their 
front  so  busilv 
engaged     that 
there  would  be 
no    possibility 
of  detaching 
forces    to    he 
sent  to  meet  the 
Russian     on- 
aught.    Hence 
the  battle  at  Neuve 
Chapelle  and   the    at- 
tacks that    were    being 
made      almost     simultane- 
ously by    the    French    troops 
at    Arras    and    in    the   Cham- 
pagne country. 


i8o 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


i  hhin  |i:iniil  ;inibiislic<)  by  En■;ll^ll 


rilK     NATIONS     A  I      WAR 


i8i 


By  the  second  ytnv  of  rlu-  war  rlu'  su- 
preme importance  of  the  artillery  had  become 
evident,  and  the  Teutonic  allies  were  bitterly 
complaining  that  the  enormous  supply  of 
ammunition  from  the  United  States  was  the 
one  thing  that  delayed  their  certain  victory. 

It  was  near  Neuve  Chapelle  that  the  forces 
of  the  Allies  began  first  to  see  evidences  of  the 
care  with  w  hich  the  Germans  had  prepared  for 
a  long  sojourn  in  P  ranee  and  had  constructed 


green  l>oughs  and  shrubbery  so  that  they 
might  escape  the  attention  of  the  enemy's 
aeroplanes.  In  these  places  the  men  took 
refuge  when  not  actually  engaged  on  duty  in 
the  open  trench.  Tiiey  were  well  furnished, 
usually  with  furniture  made  by  the  men,  but 
often  with  more  luxurious  fittings  secured  bv 
raiding  neighboring  chateaux  of  which  there 
were  many  in  that  country.  Many  had 
pianos,  and   not  a  few  were  decorated  with 


Wounded  soldiers  in  the  American  hospital  at  Saignton,  tnf;land 


their  trenches  not  merely  for  safety,  but  with 
an  eye  to  getting  at  least  a  small  amount  of 
comfort  out  of  the  situation.  Miles  of  the 
trenches,  especially  in  swampy  regions,  were 
lined  with  concrete.  The  one  difficulty  about 
this,  as  some  of  the  captives  remarked,  was 
that  w^hile  the  water  could  not  seep  in  from  the 
adjacent  swampy  soil,  when  it  rained  in  there 
was  no  way  of  getting  it  out.  After  a  while 
they  constructed  hand  pumps,  and  whole  com- 
panies would  he  employed  in  baling  out  the 
trenches  as  sailors  desperately  man  the  pumps 
on  a  sinking  ship. 

Some  of  the  trenches  had  two  stories,  and 
attached  to  some  were  rest  houses  built  of 
concrete  wholly  underground,  proof  against 
falling  shells  and  concealed  on  the  surface  by 


good  pictures  which  formed  part  of  the  army's 
loot. 

The  country  called  the  Champagne  country 
in  which  occurred  much  of  the  desultory  fight- 
ing of  the  first  half  of  1915,  which  was  so 
largely  without  definite  result,  is  a  vast  plain, 
imdulating  somewhat  like  what  we  call  rolling 
prairies  and  with  scarcely  a  hill  higJTer  than 
200  feet.  The  official  "British  observer," 
describing  the  character  of  the  fighting  done 
in  this  section,  says  of  it: 

"Every  day  an  attack  is  made  on  a  trench, 
on  the  edge  of  one  of  the  little  woods  or  to 
gain  ground  in  one  of  them;  every  day  the 
ground  gained  has  to  be  transformed  so  as  to 
give  protection  to  its  new  occupants  and 
means   of   access    to    their   supports;   every 


IS2 


THE     NATIONS     AT    WAR 


mghr.andon  manydays,  rlutiuiiiv"s  counu  r-  stillness  of  wiiar  one  sees  is  in  marked  con- 
attacks  have  to  be  repulsed.  trast  to  the  turmoil  of  shells  passing  overhead. 
"Each  attack  has  to  be  prepared  by  a  1  he  only  movement  is  the  cloud  of  smoke  and 
violent  and  accurate  artillery  tire;  it  may  be  earth  that  marks  the  burst  of  a  shell.  Here 
said  that  a  trench  has  to  be  morally  captured  and  there  long  white  lines  are  visible,  when  a 
by  gun  fire  before  it  can  be  actually  seized  by      trench  has  brought  the  chalky  subsoil  up  to 

the  top,  but  the  number  of 
^  trenches  seen  is  very  small 

compared  to  the  number 
that  exists,  for  one  cannot 
see  mto  the  valleys,  and  the 
top  of  the  ground  is  an  un- 
healthy place  to  choose  for 
seating  a  trench.  The 
woods  are  pointed  out,  with 
the  names  given  them  by  the 
soldiers,  but  it  needs  field- 
glasses  to  see  the  few  stumps 
that  remain  in  those  where 
the  artillery  has  done  its 
work.  And  then  a  tele- 
phone message  arrives,  say- 
ing that  the  enemy  are 
threatening  a  counter- 
attack at  a  certain  point, 
and  three  minutes  later  there 
is  a  redoubled  whistling 
of  shells.  At  first  one  can- 
not see  the  result  of  this 
fire — the  guns  are  searchmg 
the  low  ground  where  the 
enemy's  reserves  are  pre- 
parmg  for  the  movement, 
but  a  little  later  the  ground 
in  front  of  the  threatened 
trench  becomes  alive  with 
shell  bursts,  for  the  search- 
mg has  given  place  to  the 
building  up  of  a  wall  of  fire 
through  which  it  is  impos- 
sible for  the  foe  to  pass 
without  enormous  loss." 

Through     much    of    the 
spring  a  great  battle  raged 
incessantly  in  that  part  of 
the  works  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Neuville   and   Ecurie  just  north   of 
Arras,  called  the  Labyrinth.     This   network 
of  trenches  built    by  the    Germans    seemed 
to  be  absolutely  impregnable.     For  intricacy, 
skill  of  design,  and  defensive  power  the  works 
were  without  parallel  in  the  history  of  war. 
While  the  French  army  had  been  menacing 
it  for  months  the  determined  attack  by  which 
this  veritable  hornet's  nest  was  cleared  of  its 
defenders  began   in  the  early   part  of  May, 


Hot  broth  for  the  wounded  soldiers.     A  British  Red  Cross  kitchen  ambulance  issuing 
strengthening  drinks  to  men  who  are  on  their  way  to  the  base  hospitals 

the  infantry.  Once  in  the  new  trench,  the 
men  have  to  work  with  their  intrenching 
tools,  without  exposing  themselves,  and  wait 
for  a  counter-attack,  doing  what  damage 
they  carl  to  the  enemy  with  hand  grenades 
and  machine  guns.  Thus  the  amount  of  rifle 
fire  is  very  small;  it  is  a  war  of  explosives  and 
bayonets. 

"Looking  at   the  battle   at   a   distance  of 
about  2,000  3'ards  from  the  enemy's  line,  the 


HE     NATIONS    AT     WAR 


183 


and  lasted  until  tin-  niidcilc-  of"  June.  I, ike 
the Battleof  Ypres,  the Battleof the  Labyrinth 
was  now  lost,  then  won,  then  lost  again  by 
the  defenders.  Its  story  w-ould  make  a  vol- 
ume in  itself  and   is  hardly  to  be  told  with 


"I  always  had  a  fairly  accurate  sense  of  di- 
rection; but,  standmg  in  many  places  in  this 
giant  battlefield,  it  was  impossible  for  me  to 
say  where  were  the  Germans  and  where  the 
French,  so  completely  was  I  turned  around 


The  western  front,  early  summer,  1916.  Spring  in  the  western  theatre  of  war  again,  as  was  the  case  in  191;,  foimd  the 
initiative  in  the  hands  of  the  Germans.  They  desired,  first,  to  capture  the  French  position  of  \'erdiin,  which  controls  the  hnc  of 
the  Meuse  River.  The  French,  however,  rcsohitely  refused  to  he  driven  hack  and,  in  the  first  weeks  after  the  launching  of  the 
great  German  attack  at  \erdun,  managed  to  make  good  their  ground.  I  o  the  hammering  of  the  most  powerful  heavy  artillery 
ever  brought  into  action,  and  the  persistent  assaults  of  the  machine-like  German  infantry  the  French  with  equal  persistence  op- 
posed their  own  artillery  and  veteran  troops.      I  he  French  watchword  was  "  They  Shall  Not  Pass,"  and  they  made  it  good 

complete   accuracy   until   the  war   is  ended,  on  account  of  the  constant  zigzag  of  the  trench 

.An   American  journalist  present  during   the  lines.     Sometimes,  when  I  was  positive  that  a 

battle,  says  of  the  complicated  character  of  furious    cannonade    coming    from    a    certain 

the  positions:  po.siiion   was  German,   it   turned   out   to  be 


1 84 


THE    NATIONS    A  I     WAR 


French.  At  other  times,  when  I  thought  I 
was  safely  going  in  the  direction  of  the 
French,  I  was  hauled  back  by  officers  who 
told  me  1  was  heading  directly  into  the  Ger- 
man line  of  fire.  I  sometimes  felt  that  the 
German  lines  were  on  three  sides,  and  often  I 
was  quite  correct.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
French  lines  often  almost  completely  sur- 
rounded the  German  positions. 

"One  could  not  tell  from  the  nearness  of  the 
artillery  fire  whether  it  was  from  friend  or  foe. 
Artillery  makes  three  different  noises:  first, 


What  tliL  liuwit/Afs  liid  tcj  a  Naiiiiir 

the  sharp  report  followed  by  detonations  like 
thunder,  when  the  shell  first  leaves  the  gun; 
second,  the  rushing  sound  of  the  shell  passing 
high  overhead;  third,  the  shrill  whistle,  fol- 
lowed by  the  crash  when  it  finally  explodes. 
In  the  Labyrinth  the  detonations  which 
usually  indicated  the  French  fire  might  be 
from  the  German  batteries  stationed  quite 
near  us,  but  where  they  could  not  get  the 
range  on  us,  and  firing  at  a  section  of  the 
French  lines  some  miles  away.  I  finally  de- 
termined that  when  a  battery  fired  fast  it  was 
French;  for  the  German  fire  is  becoming  more 
intermittent  every  day." 

During  the  month  that  the  fighting  was  in 
progress  in  Champagne  more  than  half  a 
million   men  were   in   action   on   either  side. 


Hardly  had  the  echoes  of  this  conflict  died 
away  when  the  Germans  in  their  turn 
launched  their  great  offensive  in  the  west  in 
the  second  battle  of  Ypres.  They  struck 
that  section  of  the  British  line  which  was  held 
by  the  Canadians  linked  up  with  the  French. 
It  was  here  that  the  men  from  Great  Britain's 
most  important  American  colony  made  their 
reputation  as  possibly  the  best  fighters  in 
the  British  Army.  They  were  all  new  hands. 
War  had  never  come  to  that  fortunate  coun- 
try which   lies   north   of  the  United   States, 

beyond  a  border 
which  is  maintained 
without  forts,  with- 
out garrisons,  with- 
out even  men-of-war 
on  the  Great  Lakes. 
After  a  scant  six 
months  of  training 
in  the  great  camps 
around  London 
these  Colonials  took 
the  field  and  sus- 
tained the  attacks  of 
the  German  forces 
likeveterans.  They 
had,  furthermore,  to 
sustain  for  the  first' 
time  two  new  and 
terrifying  engines  of 
warfare — the  as- 
phyxiating gas  and 
the  curtain  of  fire. 
The  use  of  a  suffo- 

,  ^ I  /i, .  ^  .  '  , ,      ^^^,  ^         eating  gas  in  warfare 

irrct  had  been  anticipated 

for  years  by  writers 
speculating  on  the  new  horrors  which  what  we 
call  ci\ilization  would  bring  to  modern  war. 
Novelists  had  long  been  describing  it  as  a 
weapon  which  could  not  be  met,  and  which 
would  therefore  make  war  impossible  because 
of  its  very  deadliness.  The  Chinese,  who 
have  had  a  habit  of  preceding  us  in  many  in- 
ventions, applied  its  principle  in  a  small  way 
with  the  bombs  they  called  "Stink  Pots." 
But  the  Germans  first  reduced  the  use  of  gas 
to  something  like  a  science,  and  the  British, 
after  a  very  brief  period  of  heated  denuncia- 
tion of  the  device  as  inhuman  and  barbaric, 
hastily  adopted  it  for  their  own  use.  The 
gas,  which  is  a  product  of  chlorine,  is  of  very 
heavy  specific  gravity,  forming,  when  liber- 
ated from  the  receptacles  in  which  it  is  carried 
to  the  front,  a  sort  of  greenish-yellow  vapor 


THE    N  A  r  I  O  N  S     A  T    \\  A  R 


T85 


defenders    out    of 
causes    the    most 


which  lies  close  to  the  jjrouiul.  As  there  is 
no  means  of  propelling  it  artificially,  except 
when  it  is  used  in  exploding  shells,  it  can  only 
be  used  when  there  is  a  favorable  wind  which 
will  carry  it  toward  the  enemy's  trenches. 
Given  such  a  wind  and  reasonable  good  for- 
tune it  forms  a  most  serviceable  curtain  for 
the  advance  of  troops.  For  the  gas  not  onl\' 
is  dense  enough  to  conceal  the  lines  advancing 
behind  it,  but  if  carried  into  a  trench  will 
almost  instantly  put  its 
action.  Once  inhaled  it 
frightful  agony,  and 
if  death  does  not 
occur  to  the  victim 
it  leaves  him  crippled 
and  subject  to  all 
sorts  of  bodily  dis- 
tress in  after  life. 
Very  quickly,  how- 
ever, upon  the  ap- 
pearance of  chlorine 
gas  as  a  factor  in  war 
inventors  produced 
a  respirator  which 
serves  as  an  almost 
complete  defence. 
It  has  the  appear- 
ance of  a  cloth  hood 
pierced  for  the  sol- 
dier's eves,  but  con- 
t  a  i  n  i  n  g  in  the 
mouthpiece  fabrics 
prepared  chemically 
which  take  from  the 
gas  all  its  deadly 
qualities  as  the  sol- 
dier breathes.     The 

men  thus  accoutred  are  of  a  weird  and 
ghastlv  appearance  with  no  human  features 
apparent  save  two  huge  and  staring  goggle 
eyes.  They  look  not  unlike  the  apparitions 
which,  under  the  title  of  the  Ku  Klux  Klan, 
in  the  days  of  Reconstruction  were  used  to 
terrifv  the  negroes  of  the  South  into  sub- 
jection. 

The  chief  difficulty  involved  in  the  use  of 
the  curtain  of  gas  was  that  a  shift  in  the  wind 
might  turn  it  liack  upon  the  troops  following 
it  and  destroy  them.  The  curtain  of  fire, 
though  available  only  to  clear  a  way  for 
twenty  or  thirty  feet,  was  not  subject  at  least 
to  this  disadvantage.  Projected  for  that  dis- 
tance or  more  from  tubes  held  in  the  hands  of 
a  line  of  advancing  soldiers,  this  fiery  scourge 
could  neither  be  evaded  nor  sustained. 


An  English  correspondent  who  witnessed 
at  Ypres  the  effect  of  this  new  and  untried 
weapon  upon  soldiers  who  not  only  had  not 
encountered  it  before,  but  who  had  never 
even  heard  of  it  as  a  possibility,  gives  this 
account  of  its  effect  upon  these  troops: 

"The  strong  northeast  wind,  which  was 
blowing  from  the  enemy's  lines  across  the 
French  trenches,  became  charged  with  a 
sickening,  suffocating  odor  which  was  recog- 
nized as  proceeding  from  some  form  of  poi- 


Copyriijhl  by  Inteinniional  Newsservice 

Wreckage  at  Namur — hitherto  considered  practically  impregnable 

sonous  gas.  I  he  smoke  mo\ed  like  a  vivid 
green  wall  some  four  feet  in  height  for  several 
hundred  yards,  extending  to  within  200  yards 
of  the  extreme  left  of  our  lines.  Gradually 
it  rose  higher  and  obscured  the  view  from  the 
level. 

"Soon  strange  cries  were  heard,  and 
through  the  green  mist,  now  growing  thinner 
and  patchy,  there  came  a  mass  of  dazed, 
reeling  men  who  fell  as  they  passed  through 
our  ranks.  The  greater  number  were  un- 
wounded,  but  they  bore  upon  their  faces  the 
marks  of  agony. 

"The  retiring  men  were  among  the  first 
soldiers  of  the  world  whose  sang-froid  and 
courage  have  been  proverbial  throughout  the 
war.  All  were  reeling  through  us  and  round 
us  like  drunken  men." 


1 86 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


riu-  SLiftering  erKhirtcl  by  the  victims  of 
these  two  new  mihtai y  weapons  caused  bitter 
protest  at  the  time  and  led  to  an  agitation, 
which  will  probably  survive  the  war,  for  the 
adoption  of  an  international  agreement  after 
the  war  shall  be  over  to  prohibit  both  as 
inhuman  and  barbaric.  But  the  course  of 
this  war  has  demonstrated  that  international 
agreements  are  but  of  little  service  when  once 
the  guns  get  into  action.  It  is  more  probable 
that  the  comparatively  slight  militarx"  service 
accom  plished  by 
either  the  gas  or  the 
fire  will  lead  to  the 
military  abandon- 
ment of  both. 
After  the  first  two 
or    three   battles, 


Steel  turret  for  trench  use  devised  by  Germans.  The  French  adv,Tnce  in  Cham- 
pagne resulted  in  the  capture  of  several  steel  turrets  like  the  one  in  the  photograph. 
They  were  made  of  three-inch  plate,  could  be  revolved,  and  each  held  a  50-millimetre  gun 
and  three  gunners 

m  which  the  element  of  surprise  and  novelty 
gave  to  these  weapons  an  especial  frightful- 
ness,  it  is  not  recorded  that  their  use  ever  pro- 
duced any  decisive  advantage  to  the  side 
employing  them. 

In  May  Ypres  and  the  Yser  River  became 
once  more  the  battleground.  The  Germans  this 
time  forced  the  fighting,  and  their  purpose  was 
clearly  to  reopen  the  campaign  for  Calais 
which  had  so  signally  failed  in  the  fall.  There 
was  savage  fighting  in  the  water-logged 
country  intersected  by  sluggish  canals  which 
attacking  parties  sometimes  swam  under  fire, 
at  other  times  crossed  on  rude  rafts  in  the 
face  of  a  storm  of  bullets  against  which  it 
seemed   that  no   life   could   endure.     In   the 


end  it  all  came  to  nothing.  Bv  this  time  the 
British  Army  so  slowly  raised  and  so  ardu- 
ously drilled  on  the  plain  of  Salisbury  had 
come  to  be  a  war  machine  worth  reckoning 
with.  Within  the  safety  zone  of  the  English 
Channel,  fenced  off  from  hostile  craft  by  a 
picket  line  of  destroyers  and  scouts  at  either 
end,  the  gray  transports  which  so  lately  had 
been  gay  transatlantic  liners  were  plying 
back  and  forth  dropping  on  the  soil  of  France 
at  each  trip  2,000  or  more  soldiers — no  longer 
a  mere  mob,  but  men  trained  in  every  art  of 
war  save  the  ultimate  one  of  inflicting  and 
defying  death.  Months  before  Kitchener 
had  said,  "I  don't  know  when  this  war  will 
end,  but  it  will  begin  in  May."  May 
was  now  here  and  the  British  Army 
had  begun  to  be  an  effective  machine. 
While  the  fighting  was 
in  progress  about  Ypres 
the  Germans  were  mak- 
ing a  determined  effort 
to  capture  Dunkirk  on  the 
coast  of  the  North  Sea. 
This  would  have  served 
somewhat  as  a  consolation 
prize  for  their  failure  to  se- 
cure Calais.  They  had  in- 
deed captured  Zeebrugge, 
the  port  of  the  city  of 
Bruges.  From  this  town 
thev  expelled  all  its  in- 
habitants and  converted 
it  into  a  naval  base,  which 
was  unsatisfactory  be- 
cause of  the  shallowness 
of  the  harbor.  But  their 
ambitions  were  still  centred 
upon  either  Dunkirk  or 
Calais.  The  latter  began 
to  be  the  target  for  shells  dropped  from  Zeppe- 
lins and  Taubes,  and  about  the  middle  of  May 
a  bombardment  was  begun  of  the  town  from 
a  battery,  the  location  of  which  never  was  dis- 
covered. Aeroplanes  hovering  above  the  city 
directed  the  fire  of  the  battery,  which  was  very 
accurate.  As  at  the  time  the  most  advanced 
line  of  the  German  entrenchments  was  some 
twenty  miles  east  of  the  city  the  shells  must 
have  been  fired  from  a  point  of  even  greater 
distance.  It  was  believed  that  the  battery 
was  a  fixed  one  of  great  guns  erected  upon 
concrete  foundations  near  Dixmude. 

More  vigorous  and  persistent,  however, 
was  the  bombardment  of  Ypres.  Prior  to  the 
war  this  was  one  of  the  most  beautiful  ancient 


THE     iNATlOiNS    Al' 


187 


FUinish  cities  in  a  land 
full  of  artistic  towns.  But 
lying  as  it  did  for  some  time 
between  the  Allied  and  the 
German  line  and  occupied 
in  turn  by  either  bellig- 
erent, it  sufl-ered  cruell\  . 
Its  grand  scjuare,  or  Place 
de  la  V'ille,  had  long  been 
one  of  the  show  places  of 
Europe.  One  side  was 
formed  by  the  famous 
Cloth  Hall,  built  at  a  time 
when  trades  unions  were 
accustomed  to  house  their 
places  o t  business  in 
buildings  on  which  no  ar- 
tistic effort  was  spared, 
and  on  another  by  the 
Gothic  cathedral  dating 
from  the  thirteenth  cen- 
tury. Both  were  practi- 
cally demolished.  The 
town  itself  was  depopu- 
lated, its  people  flee- 
ing farther  into  France  from  the  continuous 


The  new  model  French  soldier.  Besides  his  rifl 
niul  regular  equipment  he  carries  the  bag  at  hi 
side  with  extra  cartridges  and  three  grenades 


ram    of    shells.     The    town 


Ever\-  French  soldier  carries  a  respi- 
rator in  his  pocket,  if  there  is  an  attack 
by  gases 


itself  had  no 
particular 
strategic  or 
defensive 
value.  It  suf- 
fered merely 
because  it  lay 
in  the  very 
middle  of  the 
country  for 
which  the 
enemies  were 
so  sa\agel\' 
hghting.  T  hat 
hghting  was 
c  f)  n  1 1  n  u  o  u  s 
tor  months. 
Its  t  h  ronol- 
ogy  presents  a 
monotonous 
series  of  suc- 
cesses and  re- 
pulses,  at- 
tacks and 
counter-at- 
racksoneither 
side.  Hill  60, 
taken  early  in 
the  action  by 
the    British, 


wa.>  the  object  of  almost 
constant  German  counter- 
attacks without  success. 
Thewest  bankof  the Ypres 
Canal,  on  which  the  Allies 
had  established  them- 
selves, was  another  point 
of  constant  Hghting  begin- 
ning as  early  as  the  zzd 
of  April  when  the  Allies 
were  driven  from  it  with 
a  loss  of  6,000  prisoners 
ami  tiiirty-tive  guns.  By 
the  2d  of  May  the  German 
(leneral  Staff  admitted  a 
loss  of  12,000  dead  in  the 
Battle  of  Ypres. 

By  this  time  the  diplo 
niatic  representatives  of 
both  sides  were  making 
He  ice  accusations  and 
counter-accusations  as  to 
the  character  of  warfare 
employed  by  their  enemies. 
Both    had    by    this    time 

come  to  use  asphyxiating  gases  both  in  shells 

and  hand  grenades.     1  he    French    employed 

a    de\'ice    for 

spraying 

flaming  li- 
quids  on    the 

G  e   r  m   a   n 

trenches,  de- 
claring in  re- 
sponse to  the 

criticisms     of 

humane  ob- 
servers     that 

it    was    done 

b\-  way  of  re- 

p  r  is  a  1.     To 

the  northeast 

of    ^  pres    on 

one     occasion 

the    Germans 

before  attack 

ingthe  British 

rolled   a  huge 

cloud     of    as- 

p  h  \'  X  i  a  1 1  n  g 

gas    t  o  w  a  r  d 

their  lines, the 

volume    of 

fumes      being 

forty  feet  high 

along  a    six-    much  in  demand 


Scene  in  the  hrst-line  trenches,  whert 
papers,  particularly  illustrated  ones,  arc 


1 88 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


mile  front.  Imagination  refuses  to  conceive 
the  emotions  of  the  defenders  who  watched 
this  slow-moving,  death-dealing  cloud  rolling 
mysteriously    down    upon    them.     But    the 


A   bit  of  warm  work  near  Ypres 

British  report  ot  the  action  declares  that 
because  of  the  use  of  the  then  newly  in- 
>  ented  respirators  comparatively  few  deaths 
resulted. 

As  the  weeks  rolled  on  the  Battle  of  Ypres 


extended  farther  and  farther  to  either  side 
of  that  little  city.  The  lighting  extended  to 
Lens,  to  Nieuport,  to  Arras,  to  Lorette 
Heights,    to    Souchez,     and     Carency.      All 

through  France 
to  the  west  of 
Rheims  the 
guns  were  roar- 
ing and  the 
charges  and 
c  o  u  n  t  j  r  - 
charges  being 
delivered  daily. 
But  the  spring 
passed  into 
summer  and 
the  s  u  ni  m  e  r 
into  autumn 
with  no  ma- 
terial advan- 
tage derived  by 
either  party. 
It  no  longer 
could  be  said 
that  such  a 
deadlock  was 
equivalent  to 
German  defeat, 
for  now  the  task 
of  advancing 
b  e  c  a  m  e  o  b  V 1- 
ou  s  1  y  i  n  c  u  m- 
bent  upon  the 
Allies.  They 
had  blocked 
the  triumphant 
march  of  Ger- 
m  a  n  y  upon 
Paris.  To  that 
extent  they 
were  victori- 
ous. But  now 
their  necessary 
task  was  the 
expulsion  of 
the  invaders 
From  France 
and  from  Bel- 
gium. So  long 
as  the  Germans 
held  all  of  the 
latterstate  and  agreatpart  of  the  economically 
rich  section  of  northern  France  they  held  the 
whip  hand.  The  horrors  of  war  had  not  yet 
extended  beyond  the  German  frontier.  From 
the  enemy  country  they  held  huge  sums  of 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


189 


One  ot  Gtiiiiiirn  b  "  liusv  Bcitlias" 


money  were  extorted  in  the  way  of  tines  and  benefit  of  the  mvaders.      The  fields,  too,  were 

involuntary  tribute  laid  upon  municipalities,  tilled  by  the  compulsory  toil  of  the  peasants 

The  mines  were  worked  by  the  compulsory  in   order  that   their  product   mif^ht   help   to 

labor  of  French  and  Belgians  and  for  the  sole  make  up  the  shortage  in  foodstuffs  in  Ger- 


\\  ar  ami  art  at  ^  pres 


c>Jl'>fi^li:  b)  liucniatioiuU  News Scnice 


190 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


many  due  to  the  British  blockade.  It  was 
clear  that  while  such  a  situation  existed  any 
negotiations  for  peace  would  be  conducted 
with  Germany  holding  the  great  advantage. 
Before  such  negotiations  could  be  begun  the 
invaders  must  be  driven  back  to  their  own 
territory.  Every  day  during  which  they 
successfully  resisted  the  efforts  of  the  British 
and  French  to  thus  expel  them  had  to  be 
counted  a  day  won  for  the  invaders. 

Desultory    fighting   without    material    re- 
sults occupied  the  armies  in  Flanders  through- 


there  was  much  dissatisfaction  with  Sir  John 
French  who  had  hitherto  been  the  idol  of  the 
British  Army  and  people.  His  reserves  had 
not  been  brought  up,  and  the  advance  upon 
Lens  was  not  pushed.  The  German  lines 
had  not  been  pierced,  although  they  were 
weakened  by  sending  great  masses  of  troops 
to  the  Russian  front.  Probably  as  a  result 
of  this  failure  General  French  was  transferred 
to  other  activities  and  General  Sir  Douglas 
Haig  succeeded  him  as  commander-in-chief 
of  the  British  in   France  and  Belgium.     The 


^^'?>- 


■iM 


.\  German  motor  convoy  destroyed  by  French  lJr.i.L;i 


Ciili\ri^lit  Lij  liil'.-'natiunal  Nc*%s6cr\i 

!in>  m  the  i"orcst  ot  \  illiers-Cotteret 


out  the  summer.  There  were  steady  rumors 
that  a  great  drive  by  the  Allies  was  to  be 
expected.  But  Great  Britain  was  still  pal- 
pably unprepared.  The  Battle  of  Neuve 
Chapelle,  in  which  according  to  Lloyd  George 
as  much  ammunition  had  been  expended  as 
during  the  whole  Boer  War,  had  shown  how 
vital  to  success  artillery  ammunition,  in  quan- 
tities hitherto  undreamed  of,  was.  Ac- 
cordingly activities  halted  until  September. 
Then  a  great  drive  was  undertaken  by  the 
Allies.  The  French  attacked  along  a  fifteen- 
mile  front  in  Champagne  and  the  English 
captured  Loos  and  for  a  time  seemed  on  the 
verge  of  taking  Lens.  But  although  a  victory 
the  action  at  Loos  resulted  in  so  small  a  part 
of  what  might  have  been  expected  of  it  that 


spring  drive  which  had  been  promised  had 
become  an  autumn  drive  and  that  had  cul- 
minated in  failure.  From  this  time  until  the 
summer  of  1916  there  was  no  further  serious 
effort  to  oust  the  Germans  from  their  foothold 
in  the  west. 

That  period  was  needed  by  the  Allies  for 
the  organization  and  great  extension  of  their 
facilities  for  making  ammunition,  and  by  the 
British  especially  for  the  creation  of  a  suffi- 
cient army  by  enforced  service.  Two  facts 
have  been  demonstrated  by  this  war.  Artil- 
lery and  ammunition  in  quantities  never 
before  dreamed  of  form  the  backbone  of 
modern  military  tactics.  The  Allies  would 
have  been  annihilated  in  the  second  year  of 
the   war   had   it   not   been   for  the   munition 


THE     NATIONS     AT    WAR 


191 


Cup>hgtlt  by  lntcriiatik.ual  Nciva  bcr\ice 


Returning  through  the  mud  to  duty  in  the  drowned  trenches 


factories  of  the  United  States.  Germany 
would  have  been  beaten  had  not  her  first 
dash  given  her  control  of  the  iron  and  coal 
deposits  of  France  and  Belgium  and  the 
metal  works  of  the  latter  country.  As  for 
the  armies  it  has  been  demonstrated  to  all 
nations  riiar  universal  mihtarv  service  is  the 


price  of  national  safety.  Perhaps  the  most 
remarkable  feature  of  the  whole  international 
broil  is  that  in  the  years  preceding  1914 
France  and  England  did  not  see  what  was 
coming.  Certainly  Germany  never  made  any 
bones  about  rattling  her  sword  in  its  scab- 
bard and  proclaiming  her  ambitions. 


Kftect  of  French  artillcr>    hic  un  bciiuaii  poMtiuns  Utuiu  \  ei  Jun.      I  he  terrihle-  tornado  ,it  exploMve,  tii.u  the  French  let 
loose  on  their  enemies  before  storming  their  positions  sweeps  the  earth  clear  of  vegetation  and  of  life  where  not  protected  by 


192 


THE     NATIONS     AT    WAR 


The  German  .ittack  011  Soissons 


on  the  left  indicates  Krcnch  artillery  answenn(;the  German  she 
burstins-     The  river  is  the  Aisne 


11. il  Nrrts  Service 

which  is  shown 


CHRONOLOGY  OF  PERIOD  TREATED  IN  CHAPTER  VI 


Ocloher  30.     Belgians  flood  lower  valley  of  the  Yser  River  and 

compel  Germans  to  withdraw. 
October  T,!.     Germans  heavily  reenforced  along  the  Yser. 
November  2.     Allies  take  Ramscapelle  with  the  bayonet. 
November  4.     Germans  losing  along  the  Yser.     Three  days' 

heavy  fighting  around  Ypres. 
November  8.     Belgians  gain  at  Dixmtide  and  Ypres. 
November  11.     Germans    capture    Dixmude,    cross    the    Yser 

Canal,  and  drive  Allies  out  of  St.  Eloi. 
November  15.     Germans    complete    defensive    line    from    the 

North  Sea  to  the  Rhine. 
November  19.     Fighting  in  Flanders  slackens,  troops  go  into 

winter  quarters. 
December  I.     Germans  prepare  for  new  dash  toward  the  sea. 

Winter  conditions  in  Flanders  very  severe. 
December  3.     Germans    take    offensive    between    Ypres    and 

Dixmude.    They  lose  heavily  trying  to  cross  the  Yser  on  rafts. 
December  7.     Allies  begin  a  general  ofl^ensive  movement. 
December  22.     Germans  claim  that  the  Allies'  advance  pressed 

since  the  7th  has  failed. 
December  27.     Germans   begin    preparations    for   the   defence 

of  Antwerp,  fearing  Allied  advance. 
January  •i-     French  gain  near  Rheims  and  San  Mihiel. 
January  8,      Allies  gain  north  of  Soissons  and  Rheims. 
January  13.     Germans,   reenforced,  win  victory  at  Soissons, 

forcing  French   to  abandon   five  miles  of  trenches  and  to 

cross    the    Aisne,    leaving    guns    and    wounded.     Fourteen 

guns  and  .3,150  prisoners  taken  by  the  Germans  under  the 

eyes  of  the  Kaiser. 


January  11.  Germans  repulsed  in  the  Ardenne  Woods  by 
French  and  Belgians.  French  retake  trenches  at  Notre 
Dame  de  Lorette. 

February  5.     Allies  undertake  a  strong  otfensive  in  Belgium. 
February  16.     French  gain  in  Champagne. 
March  2.     British  gain  near  La  Bassee. 

March  4.  Germans  for  the  first  time  use  liquid  fire  against 
French  advancing  in  Malancourt  Woods. 

March  II.  British  capture  Neiive  Chapelle.  German  loss 
estimated  by  the  British  at  18,000. 

March  15.     British  and  French  prepare  for  a  general  offensive. 

.■Ipril  5.  German  gains  in  the  ,'\rgonne  Forest  and  in  the 
Forest  of  Le  Pretre,  bombardment  of  Rheims  continues. 
It  is  reported  that  one-third  of  the  houses  have  been  de- 
stroyed and  another  third  damaged.  The  Cathedral  still 
suffering. 

.Iprll  19.  The  British  line  south  of  Ypres  has  been  pushed 
forward  three  miles. 

.Ipril  22.  Germans  drive  the  Allies  back  at  Ypres  taking  6,000 
prisoners.  The  fiercest  fighting  of  the  war  in  the  west  is 
raging,  about  this  position  for  the  next  ten  days. 

May  12.  Severe  fighting  on  the  whole  front  from  Ypres  to 
Arras,  the  Allies  taking  the  offensive. 

June  2.     Battle  of  the  Labyrinth  begins. 

June  22.  Official  announcement  of  the  capture  of  the  Laby- 
rinth by  the  French. 

July  2.  In  the  western  part  of  the  .Argonne  the  German  army 
under  the  Crown  Prince  begins  an  offensive  destined  to  last 
for  many  months  wirhmit  material  efl^ect. 


BRITISH  SHIP  IN  ACTION  IN  THE  DARDANELLES 


Photo  by  Paul  Thompson 


194 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


CHAPTER    V  I  I 


TURKEY   ENTERS  THE  WAR — SKILL  OK  GERMAN  DIPLOMATS — INCIDENT  OF  THE      BRES- 

LAU"     AND      "GOEBEN" RUSSIANS      IN      ASIA      MINOR SUEZ      CANAL      THREATENED 

THE      ATTEMPT      ON      THE      DARDANELLES BRITISH      FAILURE       IN      MESOPATAMIA 


i/7  •'/ 


T  THE  beginning  of  the 
war  the  appatent 
failure  of  German 
diplomacy  was  a 
matter  of  wide- 
spread comment. 
People  called  at- 
tention to 
the  fact  that 
in  1870, 
when  Ger- 
many fell 
uponFrance, 
the  diplo- 
macy of  Bis- 
marck had 
been  such 
that  the  war 
was  abso- 
lutely iso- 
lated and  the 
two  belligerents  left  to  deal  with  each  other  as 
their  respective  military  strength  permitted. 
But  there  was  no  Bismarck  in  1914.  When 
Germany  had  thought  to  do  battle  with 
Russia,  France,  Servia,  and  Belgium  at  the  ut- 
most, having  Austria-Hungary  for  her  ally, 
she  found  that  her  foreign  office  had  so  con- 
ducted affairs  that  England  was  at  once 
drawn  into  the  war  as  her  enemy;  that  Japan, 
in  the  far-off  Asiatic  waters,  became  her  foe; 
and  that  Italy  which  she  supposed  would 
surely  be  her  alK  ,  or  at  least  neutral,  declared 
war  on  Austria-Hungary  and  to  that  extent 
became  the  foe  of  Germany,  though,  curiously 
enough,  Italy  did  not  actually  declare  war 
upon  Germany  until  the  war  had  lasted  more 
than  two  years. 

However,  while  this  indictment  of  German 
diplomacy  seemed  a  conclusive  one,  there  was 
one  point,  overlooked  by  the  observing  world 
at  the  beginning  of  the  war,  in  which  the 
German    diplomats   were   wholly    successful. 


This  was  m  1  urkev,  and  the  success  early 
won  there  extended  in  a  great  degree  to  the 
other  Balkan  States.  The  process  of  winning 
the  Turks  to  the  German  side  had  begun  long 
before  the  shadow  of  this  war  had  been  cast 
upon  the  face  of  Europe.  For  decades 
England  had  been  the  dominant  power  at 
Constantinople,  and  the  British  Ambassador 
to  that  capital  had  been  in   effect   its   ruler. 

The  diplomacy  by  which  British  influence 
at  Constantinople  was  undermined  was  set  on 
foot  by  Emperor  William  himself,  who  in 
1889  visited  Constantinople  and  held  an  inter- 
view with  the  Sultan  Abdul  Hamid.  Begin- 
ning with  that  acquaintance  between  the  two 
almost  autocratic  rulers  German  influence 
in  the  Turkish  dominions  developed  rapidly. 
German  immigrants  established  colonies  in 
Asia  .Minor  and  Syria.  Cierman  banks  were 
established  in  Constantinople,  and  Cicrman 
capitalists,  backed  by  their  government,  se- 
cured railway  concessions  in  the  Turkish 
provinces.  Abdul  Hamid  tottered  to  a  fall 
and  final  exile,  but  the  "^  oiing  I  urk"  move- 
ment which  overthrew  him  was  fomented 
by  German  influence  and  its  strategv  directed 
by  German  diplomats.  The  ruling  families 
of  Turkev  were  encouraged  to  send  their  sons 
to  Berlin  to  get  their  military  education, 
while  General  von  der  Goltz  was  sent  to  Ger- 
manize the  Turkish  army. 

In  1898  the  Kaiser  paid  a  second  visit  to 
Constantinople  in  thecourse  of  his  picturesque 
pilgrimage  to  Jerusalem.  Immediatel\'  there- 
after Germany  secured  a  concession  for  the 
Bagdad  railway,  extending  through  .Anatolia 
and  Syria  down  the  valleys  of  the  Tigris  and 
the  P^uph rates  to  the  Persian  Gulf.  I'his  was 
a  direct  challenge  to  Great  Britain,  menacing 
as  it  did  her  control  of  the  route  to  India. 
Astute  German  political  agents  accompanied 
the  survevors  of  the  railroad  line  and  spread 
among  the  people  of  those  countries  the  most 


'95 


196 


THE    NATIONS    AT     WAR 


The  Gallipoli  Peninsula 

picturesque  and  at  the  same  time  ridiculous 
stories  of  the  character  of  the  German  people 
and  their  ruler.  Pictures  of  William  II  in  full 
Turkish  costume  brandishing  a  scimitar  were 
widely  distributed,  and  the  story  told  that  he 
and  the  entire  German  people  had  become 
converts  to  Mohammedanism  and  would  in 
conjunction  with  his  brother  the  Sultan  wage 


a  1toI\'  war  on 
the  Christian 
dogs  of  Europe. 
Isolated  as  they 
were  from  any 
knowledge  of 
the  world,  the 
simple  tribes- 
men of  the 
Turkish  do- 
minion be- 
lieved these 
fables  and  were 
ready  to  follow 
the  leaders  of 
the  "Young 
Turk"  party 
who  had  long 
before  been 
won  over  to  the 
German  cause 
by  more  ma- 
terial methods. 
Accordingly 
the  war  had 
hardly  begun 
when  incidents 
in  the  inner 
circles  of  Turk- 
ish diplomacy, 
and  pro -Ger- 
man outbreaks 
in  the  Constan- 
tinople streets 
indicated  that 
the  sympathies 
of  that  nation 
would  be  with 
Germany.  The 
usual  procla- 
mation of  neu- 
trality was  is- 
sued by  the 
Sublime  Porte 
and  the  mobil- 
ization of  the 
army  was  or- 
dered. The 
Dardanelles  were  closed  to  all  ships  and  barred 
by  rows  of  mines.  For  nearly  two  months  a 
succession  of  petty  but  none  the  less  signifi- 
cant incidents  caused  European  observers  to 
feel  certain  that  Turkey  would  ultimately 
align  herself  with  the  Teutonic  allies,  but 
with  characteristic  procrastination  the  Sub- 
lime Porte  held  oft'  any  definite  declaration. 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


197 


Early  in  August  there  had  been  a  curious 
incident  which  intensified  this  conviction. 
Two  Cjerman  ships  of  war,  the  Goeben  and  the 
Breslau,  the  former  a  powerful  modern  battle 
cruiser,  were  apparently-  trapped  b}'  a  superior 
British  fleet  in  the  harbor  of  Genoa.  To  the 
ama/.t-ment  of  the  naval  world  they  steamed 
boldly  out  of  that  harbor  and  without  attack 
from  tiie  British  made  then"  wa}'  around  the 
end   of  the    Italian   peninsula    and  into   the 


a  purchase  was  in  itself  a  gross  breach  of 
neutrality  and  Great  Britain  made  a  deter- 
mined protest.  But  the  diplomatic  corres- 
pondence on  the  subject  prolonged  by  the 
proverbial  procrastination  of  the  Turks 
dragged  on  for  weeks  until  it  was  forgotten  in 
the  declaiation  of  war. 

That  declaration  was  hastened  by  the 
actual  commencement  of  hostilities  by  the 
lurks  who  on  October  29,  1914,  bombarded 


The  Siilran  leaving  his  carriage 


Dardanelles.  It  was  discovered  later  that 
they  had  in  some  way  obtained  possession  of 
the  secret  code  of  British  naval  signals  and 
had  tricked  the  British  commander,  Admiral 
Troub ridge,  by  its  use.  But  even  so  the 
British  fleet  pursuing  them  had  evcr\'  reason 
to  belie\e  that  the  blunder  could  be  rectified. 
At  the  time  thej^  took  refuge  in  the  Darda- 
nelles Turkey  was  still  at  peace  with  all  bellig- 
erent nations.  Under  international  law  it 
was  her  diirv  to  compel  the  belligerent  ships 
taking  sanctuarv  in  her  waters  to  leave  them 
within  twenty-four  hours,  but  day  followed 
day  without  action  until  on  the  13th  of  Au- 
gust the  German  cruisers  displayed  the  Turk- 
ish flag  and  announcement  was  made  that 
they  had  been  purchased  by   1  urkey.     Such 


Odessa  from  the  sea,  and  by  the  Russian 
fleet  which  on  the  same  day  attacked  the 
Ottoman  fleet  in  the  Black  Sea.  The  formal 
declaration  followed  on  November  5th,  Eng- 
land and  France  simultaneously  joining  Rus- 
sia in  that  action. 

The  fighting  force  brought  into  the  field 
against  the  Allies  by  this  conclusion  was  one 
not  to  be  scorned.  The  world  has  looked 
contemptuously  upon  the  Turk  in  industry, 
progress,  and  his  relations  to  modern  thought, 
but  no  one  of  general  information  ever  ques- 
tioned his  fighting  ability.  At  the  moment 
that  the  European  war  broke  out  the  Turks 
were  all  veterans.  They  had  been  fighting 
steadily  in  the  Balkans  for  years.  Thev  are 
fatalists  in  character  and  heedless  of  life  in 


198 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


their  struggles  against  even  superior  forces. 
At  this  moment,  moreover,  they  had  been  sub- 
jected as  never  before  to  the  rigid  discipHne 
of  a  modern  army  under  German  leaders. 
They  had  always  known  how  to  fight,  but 
had  not  known  how  to  get  the  greatest  ad- 
vantages out  of  cooperation  and  how  to  care 
for  themselves  in  camp  and  field.  The  Ger- 
mans, too,  had  equipped  them  with  the  most 
modern  arms  and  munitions.  Accordingly 
the  Turks  brought  to  the  Teutonic  allies 
immediately  an  effective  force  of  more  than 
a  million  men,  with  the  reserve  power  which 
inheres    in    a    nation    of    17,000,000    people. 


Cu[jyri^'hl  by  Umiervvood  &  Under\iood 

Australian  troops  taking  a  swim  at  Alexandria  before  their  transport  leaves 
for  the  Dardanelles 


A  view  of  Gaba  Tcpe 

Financially,  however,  they  brought  only  a 
heavy  burden,  for  there  was  nothing  in  the 
Turkish  treasury,  and  the  expenses  of  the 
Turkish  campaigns  had  to  be  met  from  the 
German  war  chest. 

Morally,    however,    the   Turkish    aid    was 
perhaps  greater  than  materially.     To  begin 
with  it  instantly  put  Great  Britain  on  guard 
in  Egypt  and  the  Soudan.     These  Moham- 
medan   countries    had    been    held    by   Great 
Britain  under  a  protectorate.     Egypt,  ruled 
nominally  by  a  Sultan,  was  practically  under 
British  domination.     How  far,  however,  the 
puppet  Sultan  and  the  people  who  were  tied  to 
Turkey  by  the  bond  of  a  common 
religion   could   be   trusted    in    this 
•        emergency  was  a  matter  of  grave 
import  to  the  British  Government. 
No    outbreak,    however,    occurred, 
but  the  British  thought  it  expedi- 
ent  to  declare   formally  a  British 
protectorate  of  the  country.     Like 
action    was    taken    with    reference 
to  the  Island  of  Cyprus. 

It  became  apparent  immediately 
upon  the  declaration  of  war  by 
Turkey  that,  at  German  incentive, 
the  Suez  Canal  would  be  the  im- 
mediate objective  of  the  Turkish 
armies.  Troops  were  instantly  sent 
into  Asia  Minor,  and  the  tribesmen 
of  that   territory   under  the  suze- 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


199 


Street  scene  in  the  village  of  Cjallipoli 


rainty  of  the  Sultan  were  encouraged  to  put 
their  armies  into  the  field  and  attack  the 
infidels  at  every  point.  The  prolonged  and 
savage  fighting  in  Asia  Minor,  in  Persia, 
and  the  Sinai  Peninsula  cannot  be  described 
in  anv  detail  here.  Several  times  the  canal 
was  menaced,  but  in  the  end  all  the  efforts 
for  its  seizure  or  destruction  proved  futile. 
The  British  landed  heavy  bodies  of  troops 
drawn  largely  from  India  on  the  Mediter- 
ranean and  Red  Sea  coast  while  the  Russians 
entered  Asia  Minor  from  the  Black  Sea, 
taking  the  enemies  of  the  Allies  in  the  rear. 
The  fighting  was  vigorous  but  inconclusive. 
Only  once  was  the  canal  put  in  serious  jeop- 
ard\-.  The  efforts  of  the  Porte  to 
have  the  tribesmen  declare  a  holy 
war  were  futile,  and  the  sanguinary 
horrors  of  that  sort  of  conflict  were 
happily  averted.  The  sror\'  of  the 
fighting  in  S\  ria,  Palestine,  and  the 
countries  bordering  on  the  Mediter- 
ranean were  curiously  reminiscent 
of  the  Hebrew  scriptures  with  their 
continual  references  to  places  and 
provinces  mentioned  in  the  Old 
Testament. 

But  while  this  desultory  and 
inconclusive  warfare  was  being 
waged  in  Asia  Minor  the  British 
were  preparing  for  a  stroke  at  the 
Turkish  power,  which,  had  it  been 


successful,  would  ha\'e  ended  the  menace  of 
the  Turco-German  alliance,  would  have  de- 
stroyed all  Turkish  influence  in  either  Europe 
or  Asia,  and  would  have  appreciably  hastened 
the  end  of  the  war.  Instead  of  doing  any 
of  these  things,  however,  it  failed  and  failed 
disastrouslv. 

Constantinople,  as  is  well  known,  lies  just 
off  the  sea  of  Marmora  and  is  reached  from 
the  Mediterranean  by  the  narrow  strait 
known  as  the  Dardanelles.  During  the 
period  of  modern  European  history  sover- 
eignty over  this  strait  has  been  conceded  to 
the  Turkish  empire. 

The  British  now  determined  to  break  the 


One  ul   llie   l>llli>ll  tlJrl^|lllll^  "II 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


C^ 


Australian  ("  Anzac")  troops  charge  a  Turkish  trench  near  Galiipoli 


Dardanelles  barrier.  They  blundered  at 
the  outset  by  underestimating  its  strength. 
The  forts  along  the  precipitous  sides  of 
the  narrow  waterway  were  no  longer  merely 
the  works  of  antiquated  masonry  which  for 
centuries  had  guarded  the  strait.  Under  the 
direction  of  skilled  German  engineers  power- 
ful earth  works  had  been  erected  and  equipped 
with  the  most  modern  weapons  of  precision 


I 


'^f 


.Wn^ 


A  small  pun  ion  of  the  stores  at  Lancashire  landing,  near  Sedd-el-Bahr 


and  power  that  Krupp's  works  could  produce. 
They  were  manned  by  Turkish  soldiers, 
now  drilled  into  a  state  of  the  highest  effi- 
ciency by  German  drill  masters,  while  German 
artillerists  directed  the  fire  that  was  con- 
centrated upon  the  attacking  ships. 

The  Allies  made  their  initial  blunder  by 
proceeding  with  the  utmost  deliberation 
with  all  their  preparations  for  an  attack  upon 

this  strong- 
^  hold.  There 
is  every  rea- 
son to  be- 
lieve that 
had  that  at- 
tack been 
delivered  in 
force,  both 
military  and 
naval,  in  the 
last  months 
of  1914  it 
might  have 
succeeded. 
At  that  time 
the  effect  of 
German  or- 
g  a  n  i  z  i  n  g 
ability  had 
not  yet  been 
manifest 
among  the 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


201 


British  troops  land  at  the  Dardanelles  and  gain  firm  footing 


Copyright  by  Underwood  6i  UnUetwotHl 


Turkish  troops,  nor  had  many  of  the  forts 
then  been  equipped  with  German  artillery. 
But  in  November  of  that  year  the  Allies  did 
the  worst  possible  thing  by  giving  evidence 
of  their  intention  to  attack  the  straits  by 
beginning  a  desultory  bombardment  of  the 
forts.  To  this  warning  was  soon  added  the 
news  that  a  great  naval  expedition  was  being 
fitted  out  by 


dered  again.  It  seems  probable  that  a 
joint  military  and  naval  expedition  striking 
simultaneously  so  that  the  enemy's  forts 
would  have  been  engaged  both  on  the  land- 
ward and  the  seaward  side  might  have 
succeeded.  Instead  of  it,  the  first  attack 
was  made  wholly  by  the  nav\-.  What  was 
probably  the  most  powerful  Heet  ever  brought 


Eng- 
and 


both 
land 
I'  r  a  n  c  e  . 
Thereupon 
naturally 
the  Turks 
spurred  on 
to  action  by 
their  Ger- 
man leaders 
began  fever- 
ish endeav- 
ors to  put 
the  threat- 
ened point 
in  the  high- 
est state  of 
defence. 

When  the 
Allies  actu- 
ally moved 
they      blun- 


A  sho 


202 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


The  Russian  Campaign  in  Asia  Minor.  After  the  capture  of  Krzerum  the  Russian  forces  pushed  on  in  three  cohimns,  one 
toward  Trehizond,  the  second  toward  Erzingan  and  Sivas,  where  the  main  Turkish  army  had  its  base,  and  the  third  cohimn 
southward  to  Mush  and  Bitlis.  The  capture  of  Erzerum  and  the  advance  into  Asia  Minor  enabled  the  Russians  to  capture  Ker- 
manshah,  in  Persia,  and  to  turn  westward  toward  Bagdad,  with  the  aim  of  cooperating  with  the  British  in  Mesopatamia 


into  action  composed  of  more  than  fifty 
British  and  French  ships  appeared  at  the 
entrance  to  the  Dardanelles  late  in  Pebru- 
ary.  The  strait  itself  is  about  forty-two  miles 
long,  very  tortuous  in  its  course,  and  varying 
in  width  from  one  to  four  miles.  The  chan- 
nel was  of  course  blocked  at  the  outset  by 
Turkish  mines.  The  defences  at  the  iEgean 
entrance  were  antiquated  and  quite  readily 
silenced  by  the  assailants.  First  among  the 
attacking  fleet  was  the  famous  super-dread- 
nought Out'en  EUzaht'th,  carrying  eight  15-inch 
guns  in  her  primary  battery  with  a  range  far 
exceeding  that  of  any  ordnance  mounted  in  the 
Turkish  batteries,  so  that  she  could  easily 
lie  at  a  point  thoroughly  safe  from  any  fire 
from  the  enemy,  sheltered  by  mtervening 
hills,  and  drop  her  15-inch  shells  into  the  en- 
emy's works.  One  of  these  shells  discharged 
20,000  shrapnel  bullets.  Backed  by  such 
ships  as  the  Agamemnon,  Irresistible,  and  the 
French  (Jaulois,  she  began  the  bombardment 
at  a  range  of  from  11,000  to  12,000  yards, 
and  in  less  than  an  hour  the  forts  at  Kumkale 
and  Sedd-el-Bahr  were  reduced  to  such  a 
degree  of  impotence  that  the  smaller  vessels 
could  run  in  and  finish  the  work.  This  en- 
gagement took  place  on  March  5th,  and  the 
s  iccess  of  the  British  was  so  complete  that 
they  felt  confident  that  the  conquest  of  the 


straits  from  end  to  end  would  be  effected 
with  equal  ease.  This  hope,  however,  proved 
illusory.  On  March  iSth  the  allied  fleet 
entered  the  straits  with  the  purpose  ot  press- 
ing through  and  silencing  the  forts  on  either 
side  as  they  progressed.  But  they  found 
that  forts  and  batteries  they  supposed  were 
silenced  suddenly  sprang  into  new  life  and 
poured  upon  them  a  savage  and  well-directed 
fire.  Trawlers  and  destroyers  had  been  sent 
ahead  to  sweep  the  strait  of  mines,  but  the 
battle  had  hardly  been  in  progress  two  hours 
when  the  Bouvet,  the  largest  of  the  French  bat- 
tleships on  the  scene,  struck  a  mine.  Sinking 
by  the  stern  as  she  rapidly  began  to  do,  she  at- 
tracted the  attention  of  the  Turkish  gunners 
who  concentrated  upon  her  a  fierce  fire.  Badly 
cut  to  pieces  and  with  the  operation  of  her  ma- 
chinery abruptly  stopped,  the  Bouvet  sunk 
while  surrounded  by  torpedo  boats  and  destroy- 
ers striving  to  save  her  crew.  Only  a  few  could 
be  rescued.  Shortly  thereafter  the  Irresisti- 
ble, a  British  pre-dreadnought  and  the  Ocean 
of  the  same  class,  also  went  down,  but  swift 
action  by  destroyers  saved  most  of  their  per- 
sonnel. The  British  had  thought  the  Turkish 
tiger  was  sleeping,  but  it  had  savagely  used 
its  teeth  and  claws. 

The  complete  failure  of  the  allied  fleet  in 
the  Dardanelles  was  a  bitter  disappointment 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


203 


to  its  champions,  particularly  to  those  in 
England  where  it  had  been  believed  that  the 
British  navy  was  equal  to  any  task  that  might 
be  set  it.  But  it  may  be  said  that  this 
war  has  demonstrated  that  a  fleet  alone  can 
never  be  efl^ective  against  land  fortifications. 
Naval  authorities  of  both  allied  nations 
insisted  that  the  passage  of  the  straits 
was  not  impossible,  but  coupled  their  in- 
sistence with  the  conclusion  that  such  a  pas- 
sage would  be  valueless  unless  accompanied 
liy  a  land  force  to  take  possession  of  the  de- 
fences which  the  ships  would  put  out  of  action. 
Accordingly  while  the  allied  fleets,  an- 
choring out  of  danger,  continued  a  desultory 
bombardment  of  the  forts,  a  great  military 
expedition  was  organized  in  Egypt  under  the 
command  of  Sir  Ian  Hamilton.  Fifty  thou- 
sand men,  both  French  and  British,  readied 
the  Gallipoli  Peninsula  early  in  April.  The 
Turks  were  well  warned  by  this  time  and  were 
feverishly  preparing  for  defence.  They  were 
ably  seconded  in  their  efforts  by  the  British 
who,  when  they  came  to  unload  their  trans- 
ports, found  that  the  various  units  and  their 
supplies  had  been  so  badlv  mixed  on  em- 
barking that  it  was  impossible  to  unload  them 


with  any  efficiency.  The  whole  fleet  had  to 
return  to  Egypt,  and  after  rearrangement 
returned  and  began  its  landing  on  April 
25th.  By  this  time  the  lurks  had  rushed 
troops  into  the  Gallipoli  Peninsula  until 
they  outnumbered  the  invaders  easily  four 
to  one.  At  every  point  where  the  typog- 
raphv  of  the  shore  lent  itself  to  a  successful 
landing  the  furks  were  strongly  intrenched, 
their  earthworks  and  their  batteries  masked 
so  that  from  the  ships  there  seemed  no  serious 
obstacle  to  taking  possession  of  the  country. 
The  British  troops  were  wholly  without 
experience  in  war,  the  vast  majority  of  them 
being  men  who  six  months  before  had  been 
leading  a  peaceful  life  in  Australia  and  New 
Zealand,  five  thousand  miles  away.  Their 
officers  were  equally  inexperienced.  The 
first  landing  was  made  at  a  point,  Gaba  Tepe, 
a  bay  on  the  JEgezn  side  of  the  peninsula 
away  from  the  Dardanelles.  The  landing 
was  begun  about  3  a.  M.  while  it  was  still  dark, 
the  men  being  placed  in  small  boats  which 
were  towed  by  the  battleships  and  destroyers 
as  near  to  the  shore  as  the  draught  of  water 
would  permit.  About  a  half  a  mile  from 
shore  the  boats  cast  off  and  made  their  way 


The  Turk  In   Vsia 


204 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


toward  the  beach.  In  that  darkest  hour  that 
precedes  the  dawn  the  watchers  on  the  ships 
could  not  tell  whether  their  fellows  were 
approaching  a  deserted  coast  or  whether  in 
that  blackness  there  lurked  a  powerful  force 
of  the  enemy  ready  to  greet  them  with  rifle 
shots  and  machine  guns.  Suddenly  they  saw 
an  alarm  light  flash  on  the  shore  and  signal 
for  a  moment  or  two,  when  there  burst  out 
a  rapid  fire  of  rifles  that  told  to  the  men  still 
on  the  ships  that  their  comrades  would  have 


"From  them  we  learned  what  had  hap- 
pened in  those  first  wild  moments.  All 
the  tows  had  almost  reached  the  beach, 
when  a  party  of  Turks  intrenched  almost 
on  the  shore  opened  up  a  terrible  fusillade 
from  rifles  and  also  from  a  Maxim.  Fortu- 
nately most  of  the  bullets  went  high,  but, 


to  fight  their  way  to  a  foothold  on  the  beach. 
A  correspondent  of  the  London  Times  tells 
in  graphic  phrase  the  story  of  this  first  effort 
of  the  British  forces  to  establish  themselves 
on  Turkish  territory: 

"The  first  authentic  news  we  received  came 
with  the  return  of  our  boats.  A  steam  pin- 
nace came  alongside  with  two  recumbent 
forms  on  her  deck  and  a  small  figure,  pale 
but  cheerful,  and  waving  his  hand  astern. 
They  were  one  of  our  midshipmen,  just  six- 
teen years  of  age,  shot  through  the  stomach, 
but  regarding  his  injury  more  as  a  fitting 
consummation  to  a  glorious  holiday  ashore 
than  a  wound,  and  a  chief  stoker  and  petty 
officer,  all  three  wounded  by  that  first  burst 
of  musketry  which  caused  many  casualties 
in  the  boats  just  as  they  reached  the  beach. 


nevertheless,  many  men  were  hit  as  they  sat 
huddled  together  forty  or  fifty  in  a  boat. 

"It  was  a  trying  moment,  but  the  Aus- 
tralian volunteers  rose  as  a  man  to  the 
occasion.  They  waited  neither  for  orders 
nor  for  the  boats  to  reach  the  beach,  but, 
springing  out  into  the  sea,  they  waded 
ashore  and,  forming  some  sort  of  a  rough 
line,  rushed  straight  on  the  flashes  of  the 
enemy's  rifles.  Their  magazines  were  not 
even  charged.  So  they  just  went  in  with 
cold  steel,  and  I  believe  I  am  right  in  saying 
that  the  first  Ottoman  Turk  since  the  last 
Crusade  received  an  Anglo-Saxon  bayonet 
in  him  at  five  minutes  after  5  a.  m.  on  April 
25th.  It  was  over  in  a  minute.  The  Turks 
in  this  first  trench  were  bayoneted  or  ran 
away,  and  a  Maxim  gun  was  captured." 

But  the  Turks  did  not  long  continue  to 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


20  s 


run,  nor  did  they  run  far.  The  braggadocio 
ot  liririsli  journalists  in  the  early  days  of  the 
campaign  on  the  Gallipoli  Peninsula  sounds 
merely  laughable  when  read  in  the  light  of 
the  events  of  that  disastrous  enterprise. 
All  along  the  promontory  from  the  Bulair 
Lsriimus  to  the  toe  of  the  boot  to  which  that 
bit  of  land  is  sometmies  compared,  the  land- 
ing was  pushed,  with  gallantry  it  is  true, 
but  against  savage  opposition.  The  country 
lent  itself  readily  to  defence,  for  steep  bluffs 


ground,  but  on  the  26th  actually  charged 
the  invaders  while  their  snipers  tried  to  pick 
off  the  officers  and  men  on  the  decks  of  the 
ships  a  mile  or  more  away.  The  British  tried 
some  curious  expedients  to  deceive  the  enemy 
and  to  smuggle  additional  forces  ashore  un- 
seen. At  one  point  on  the  peninsula  a  big 
herd  of  donkeys  with  dummy  baggage  was 
put  ashore  in  the  hope  of  attracting  the 
Turkish  attention  to  that  spot  while  a 
large  detachment  of  troops  was  being  landed 


Ambulance  wagon  passing  through  the  great  gully  at  Helles 


rose  directly  from  the  beach  and  the  table- 
land above  was  so  broken  with  ridges,  val- 
le\  s,  bluffs,  and  sand  pits  that  the  enemy's 
snipers  and  machine-gun  batteries  could 
find  cover  on  every  hand.  1  he  landing 
operations  were  conducted  at  three  points, 
and  from  the  ships  lying  two  miles  or  more 
out  a  heavy  and  continuous  hre  was  poured 
upon  the  land  occupied  by  the  lurks.  Every 
kind  of  shell  was  dropped  upon  their  works 
from  the  15-inch  shrapnel  of  the  Queen 
Elizabeth  down  to  the  little  one-pounders 
which  made  up  in  numbers  wiiat  they  lacked 
in  size.  But  the  Turks,  rigluing  with  their 
customary    gallantry,  not    only    held    their 


at  another.  Again  a  big  merchant  liner, 
tilled  with  troops  who  were  kept  under 
hatches,  was  allowed  to  drift,  apparently 
helplessK',  toward  the  beach.  She  was  ob- 
\iously  not  a  ship  of  war  and  was  apparently 
abandoned,  so  that  the  Turkish  batteries  let 
her  run  aground  without  attack.  The  idea 
had  been  that  as  soon  as  she  was  actually 
beached  great  doors  that  had  been  cut  in 
her  sides  would  be  flung  open  and  the  men 
rushed  ashore  without  the  need  of  boats  or 
exposure  to  fire  other  than  briefly.  Unluck- 
ilv  she  stranded  at  a  point  where  there  was 
deep  water  between  her  and  the  beach. 
This  made  it  necessary  to  bring  up  a  lighter 


2o6 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


to  ford  the  men  across.  Naturally  this 
attracted  the  attention  of  the  Turks,  who 
instantly  directed  a  perfect  tornado  of  rifle 
and  machine-gun  fire  on  the  men  as  they 
showed  themselves.  Disembarkation  under 
these  conditions  meant  certain  death,  and 
as  it  was  apparent  the  Turks  had  no  heavy 
artillery  at  that  point  with  which  to  demolish 
the  ship,  any  further  action  on  the  part  of 
the  two  thousand  men  aboard  was  stopped 
for  the  time.  So  the  men  aboard  lay  be- 
tween decks  all  day  while  the  clatter  of  bul- 
lets rattled  against  her  sides  and  the  battle- 
ships round  about  kept  up  a  fierce  fire  on  the 


fired  and  the  green  bird  promptly  fell  to  the 
earth,  dropping  his  rifle.  Its  hands,  face, 
and  rifle  were  pamted  green  and  its  clothing 
was  of  the  same  color,  but  of  a  darker  shade. 
The  bag  was  as  heartily  cheered  by  the  men 
as  if  it  were  a  Turkish  regiment,  for  that 
particular  sniper  had  been  an  undoubted 
terror.  On  another  part  of  the  field  a  pretty 
harem  lady  sniper  was  after  considerable 
eflPort  rounded  up  and  brought  into  the  British 
lines.  She  cried  and  struggled,  pointing  piti- 
fully to  another  part  of  the  bush  from  whence 
she  had  been  brought.  At  length  a  de- 
tachment of  men   allowed   her  to   lead   the 


The  wiLtk  ut  11.  M.  S.  Lo«m  vvliidi  ran  ajjniuiul  iii  a  biiiitlnvi-st  gale.     A  .slitll  Iruiii  tlic  cnt-my  battery  is  seen   striking  the  water 
close  to  the  wreck.     The  telescope  on  the  right  is  that  of  an  observer  who  is  trying  to  spot  the  enemy  battery  which  is  firing 


neighboring  coast  to  prevent  the  Turks  from 
bringing  batteries  into  action.  Under  the 
cover  of  darkness  the  troops  finally  got  ashore 
with  but  little  loss. 

Very  early  in  this  campaign  the  invaders 
came  to  have  a  very  high  respect  for  the 
Turkish  "sniper."  Some  of  the  stories  of 
the  devices  adopted  by  these  sharpshooters 
for  escaping  attention  while  striking  down 
their  enemies  are  most  picturesque.  A  writer 
in  the  Fortnightly  Review  tells  these  two: 

"A  captain  of  a  London  territorial  regi- 
ment happened  to  look  back  after  his  men 
had  passed  a  solitary  tree  on  the  field  when 
he  noticed  something  moving  on  it.  It 
looked  like  a  green  bird.     He  took  aim  and 


way  to  the  spot  indicated,  and  here  they 
found  her  child  in  a  dugout  tastefully  fur- 
nished. In  a  corner  was  a  pile  of  identifica- 
tion disks  probably  taken  systematically- 
from  the  necks  of  dead  soldiers,  and  an  al- 
most endless  supply  of  ammunition.  Care- 
fully hidden  away  was  her  yashmak  (veil) 
which  the  men  allowed  her  to  take  away." 

While  the  British  were  landing  on  the 
European  side  of  the  Dardanelles  the  French 
under  General  D'Amade  also  landed  on 
the  Asiatic  side  and  established  themselves 
firmly.  Their  first  attack  was  on  the  fort 
at  Kum  Kale  which  they  took.  But  there- 
after for  months,  thougii  there  was  continued 
fighting,   and   both   the   British   and   French 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


207 


troops  were  repeatedly  reenforced,  the  effort 
to  push  up  the  penmsula  and  the  mainland 
toward  the  narrows  was  but  a  distressing;  rec- 
ord of  continued  reverses.  In  fact,  it  was 
but  a  few  weeks  after  the  landing  was  com- 
plete before  the  military  authorities  of  the 
allied  go\ernments  began  to  understand  that 
the  problem  likely  to  be  forced  upon  them 
was  not  how  they  should  get  to  Constanti- 
nople, but  rather  how  they  should  get  their 
men  off  the  peninsula  and  to  safety.  There 
was  no  lack  of  gallantry  on  the  part  of  the 
invading  forces,  but  they  were  enormously 
outnumbered.     Though   they  were  supplied 


peoples.  It  might  not  come,  but  even  so 
it  was  of  \iral  importance  that  no  admission 
of  a  great  disaster  should  be  made  public  at 
that  critical  moment. 

In  August,  191 5,  following  a  visit  to  Egvpt 
of  Lord  Kitchener  a  new  expedition  of  50,000 
men  to  join  in  the  (lallipoli  attack  was  em- 
barked at  a  port  on  the  Island  of  Lemnos  and 
moved  to  Suvla  Bay  near  the  head  of  the 
Gallipoli  Peninsula.  This  time  there  had 
been  no  blundering  in  the  embarkation  while 
the  attention  of  the  lurks  had  been  success- 
fully diverted  from  the  landing  point  by 
feints  made  by  other  forces  in  other  direc- 


Copyright  hy  American  Press  Association 

Greatest  care  was  i.tkcn  with  the  ilrinkins  water  of  the  alhcJ  troops  at  the  Dardanelles.     It  was  filtered  and  Immediately  placed 


with  every  possible  engine  of  war,  the  stub- 
bornness of  the  resistance  they  encountered 
was  such  that  their  expedition  was  actually 
abandoned  before  they  reached  the  first 
line  of  the  Turkish  defence  of  Constantinople. 
The  spring  and  summer  of  191 5  was  a 
period  full  of  discouragement  to  the  Allies. 
Everywhere  they  were  fighting  defensive 
battles,  nowhere  could  they  point  to  a  more 
inspiriting  success  than  merel}'  holding  the 
enemy  in  check.  Great  Britain  had  not  yet 
successfully  grappled  with  the  conscription 
issue,  and  the  troops  which  had  been  raised 
by  voluntary  enlistment  had  not  yet  become 
really  eflecti\e.  Some  great  success  was 
most  desirable  to  stimulate  the  enthusiasm 
and   reawaken   the   confidence  of  the   allied 


tions.  Accordingly  they  were  put  ashore 
without  serious  opposition  at  a  point  called 
Ari  Burnu,  but  which  the  soldiers  promptly 
named  Anzac  Hay,  that  name  being  derived 
from  the  initials  of  the  words  by  which  the 
troops  engaged  in  the  expedition  were  known 
— "Australia  and  New  Zealand  Army 
Corps."  W  ith  this  foothold  it  was  hoped  that 
the  furkish  main  force  on  the  peninsula 
might  be  attacked  simultaneously  front  and 
rear  and  thus  overwhelmed.  Admirable  as 
the  plan  seemed  it  was  destined  to  failure. 
Fhere  followed  twelve  days  of  uninterrupted 
fighting  in  which  the  losses  were  heavier 
than  at  any  other  period  of  the  Dardanelles 
campaign.  And  yet  nothing  came  of  this  at 
all  except  the  definite  check  of  the  Britist- 


208 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


With  the  failure  of  this  effort  to  destroy  the 
Turkish  defences,  which  became  apparent 
by  the  middle  of  October,  any  further  serious 
attempt  on  the  part  of  the  British  to  carry 
out  their  original  plan  of  campaign  against 
Constantinople  was  abandoned.  The  pres- 
ence of  defeat  was  too  obvious.  The  offen 
sive  was  dropped  and  all  military  minds  in 
the  general  staff  of  the  Allies  were  concen- 
trated on  the  problem  how  to  get  the  army, 
which  by  this  time  numbered  200,000  men  or 
more,   out   of  the   peninsula.     Here   for  the 


the  first  week  of  January,  1916,  all  had  left 
the  peninsula.  The  French,  who  had  held 
the  Asiatic  mainland,  were  withdrawn  at 
about  the  same  moment. 

No  single  operation  of  the  great  war  re- 
sulted so  disastrously  to  the  Allies  as  the 
Dardanelles  expedition.  It  had  been  mis- 
managed from  the  first,  and  the  ultimate 
failure  was  made  all  the  more  bitter  to  Enr- 


British  batteries  at  woric  at  the  Dardanelles 


first  time  the  Turks,  notwithstanding  their 
German  leadership,  showed  inefficiency.  They 
had  been  magnificent  in  defence.  While  it 
was  true  that  they  had  the  advantage  of 
overwhelming  numbers,  they  defended  their 
country  successfully  against  a  powerful  at- 
tacking force  on  land  and  a  naval  force  of 
absolutely  unprecedented  strength.  But  now 
they  let  slip  the  game  that  was  fairly  within 
their  grasp.  For  some  reason  they  could 
not  be  led  into  any  effective  attack  upon  the 
British  forces  which  were  really  at  their 
mercy.  Instead  they  kept  up  a  merely 
desultory  assault  upon  the  British  outposts, 
while  with  most  admirable  skill  Sir  Ian  Ham- 
ilton gradually  withdrew  his  forces  until  by 


land  because  the  record  showed  so  many 
points  at  which  military  miscalculations  or 
mere  stupidity  explained  that  failure.  The 
price  paid  was  a  loss  reported  officially  up 
to  December  11,  191 5,  of  112,921  men.  More- 
over, there  were  up  to  that  time  96,683  men 
admitted  to  the  Allies'  hospitals.  Six  battle- 
ships, one  of  them  French,  were  lost  in  the 
course  of  the  naval  operations.  The  num- 
ber of  men  invalided  to  the  hospitals  was 
abnormal  in  the  course  of  this  war,  during 
which  the  most  scientific  systems  of  sanita- 
tion had  kept  the  mere  cases  of  sickness  down 
to  a  minimum  never  before  maintained  in 
large  military  operations.  But  the  condi- 
tions of  fighting  were  such  as  to  break  down 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


209 


tlie  constitutions  of  the  men.  The  water 
supply  was  utterly  inadequate.  All  water 
had  to  be  brought  by  ship,  landed  in  water 
bags,  and  carried  on  mule  back  to  the  various 
camps.  General  Hamilton  reported  that  in 
the  battle  of  August  10th  he  dared  not  order 
his  reserves  into  action  because  of  their 
sufferings  from  thirst. 

"At  Anzac,"   he  said,   "when    the    mules 


fortune  in  attack.  There  has  seldom  been 
so  e.\traordinary  an  achievement  as  the 
withdrawal  of  the  British  force  from  Suvla 
and  Anzac  with  practically  no  loss  what.so- 
ever.  (leneral  llamiiton  in  advance  esti- 
mated his  probable  casualties  at  50  per  cent.; 
they  were  in  fact  three  killed  and  hve  wounded 
out  of  more  than  70,000  men  withdrawn. 
The  withdrawal  was  effected  in  two  nights 


View  of  the  landing  camp  pitched  by  the  .'\llies  at  the  Dardanelles 


with  water  bags  arrived  at  the  front,  the 
men  would  rush  up  to  them  in  swarms  just 
to  lick  the  moisture  that  exuded  through  the 
canvas  bags."  At  other  points  lighters 
carrying  the  water  from  the  ships  to  the 
shore  grounded  some  distance  out  and  the 
men  had  to  swim  to  them  to  fill  their  water 
bottles. 

Notwithstanding  all  these  difficulties  Gen- 
eral Hamilton  was  bitterly  aggrieved  by  the 
order  to  retire.  He  felt  that  arduous  as  was 
the  task  its  performance  was  still  not  hope- 
less and  with  reenforcements  and  pertinacity 
he  might  still  carry  the  day.  But  his  orders 
were  imperative,  and  his  good  fortune  in 
retreat  made  up  to  some  degree  for  his  ir.is- 


and  conducted  so  quietly  and  with  such 
astute  measures  for  the  deception  of  the 
Turks  that  the  latter  were  lulled  to  security 
and  hardly  awakened  to  the  fact  that  their 
enemy  was  stealing  away  before  the  entire 
British  e.xpedition  was  again  on  its  ships. 

So  ended  the  Dardanelles  e.xpedition.  It 
accomplished  nothing  for  its  projectors,  but 
its  failure  had  no  material  effect  on  the 
progress  of  the  war.  It  is  true  that  some 
300,000  Turks  were  set  free  to  join  in  the 
attack  on  the  Suez  Canal.  How  little  they 
accomplished  in  that  direction  was  soon  to 
be  shown. 

While  the  British  and  French  were  push- 
ing their  Dardanelles  expedition  with  a  gal- 


210 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


lantry  wortliy  of  a  better  outcome  the  Rus- 
sians were  advancing  into  Asia  Minor  from 
the  east  and  the  British  from  the  west,  while 
the  Turkish  forces  between  them  were  put- 
ting up  a  magnificent  fight  on  both  fronts 
with  a  degree  of  success  that  even  at  the  end 
of  the  second  year  of  the  war  left  the  question 
of  domination  in  Asia  Minor  still  undeter- 
mined. The  Russians  and  the  Turks  were 
on  the  offensive,  the  British  strictly  on  the 
defensive,  for  their  one  task  was  to  defend 
the  Suez  Canal.  What  the  Russians  sought 
first  was  the  capture  of  the  town  of  Erzerum, 
a  town  in  Armenia  just  southeast  of  the  Rus- 


and  though  railroads  were  unavailable  and 
the  countr\-  most  difficult  to  cover,  penetrated 
far  into  the  interior.  The  Russian  Grand 
Duke  Nicholas  who  had  suddenly  and  mys- 
teriously disappeared  from  around  Galicia, 
where  he  had  been  in  command  of  the  Rus- 
sian armies  during  their  first  advance  into 
that  country,  appeared  in  the  Caucasus  in 
the  middle  of  February,  191 5.  His  appear- 
ance there  was  an  amazement  to  the  military 
world  as  well  as  to  the  defenders  of  that  town, 
for  the  campaign  had  been  undertaken  ir; 
the  dead  of  winter,  the  converging  columns 
of  Russians  advancing  through   a  tangle  of 


Troops  landing  at  the  Dardanelles 


sian  border.  This  ancient  fortress  on  the 
Turkish  road  to  India,  and  on  the  Russian 
road  through  Asia  Minor  to  Constantinople, 
has  long  been  a  strategic  point  for  which 
the  Russians  and  Turks  have  struggled. 
Since  the  beginning  of  the  last  century  this 
warfare  has  taken  the  shape  of  endless  riot, 
massacre,  and  border  warfare  between  the 
Christian  Armenians  and  the  Kurds  who 
yield  allegiance  to  the  Crescent.  The  Chris- 
tian world  has  long  sorrowed  for  the  suffer- 
ings of  the  Armenians,  but  has  been  able  to 
accomplish  nothing  for  the  amelioration  of 
their  lot  because  of  the  international  politics 
involved  in  that  situation.  Perhaps  one 
good  that  may  come  of  this  great  war  will 
be  the  end  of  this  continuing  crime  which  has 
shocked  humanity  for  half  a  century. 

Scarcely  had  war  between  Russia  and  Tur- 
key been  declared  when  the  Russian  army 
crossed  the  border,  overran  northern  Persia, 


mountain  passes  on  wretched  dirt  roads  and 
without  a  single  railroad.  The  Black  Sea 
was  of  course  open  to  the  Russians,  but  the 
only  port  connected  with  Erzerum  by  a 
tolerable  road  was  Trebizond  which  was  in 
the  hands  of  the  Turks.  With  Erzerum 
taken  the  next  important  step  in  the  Russian 
campaign  was  the  capture  of  this  point  on 
the  Black  Sea.  Accordingly  in  the  summer 
of  191 5  about  a  third  of  the  Grand  Duke's 
army  at  Erzerum  was  dispatched  to  take 
Trebizond,  while  the  remainder  turned  to 
the  southward  pursuing  the  Turks  and  fight- 
ing for  control  of  the  roads  leading  up  to  the 
Bagdad  railway.  It  was  on  the  i6th  of 
February  that  the  chief  Armenian  city  had 
been  taken;  March  2d  they  took  the  fortified 
city  of  Bitlis;  and  on  the  iSth  of  April,  with 
the  Black  Sea  fleet  cooperating  with  them, 
the  Russian  land  forces  actually  entered 
Trebizond.     This    rapid   advance,  though   it 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


211 


afFected  a  comparatively  small  section  of 
Persia,  was  of  incalculable  value  to  the 
British  for  it  diverted  the  attention  of  the 
Turks  from  their  attack  upon  Suez.  Not- 
withstanding the  difficult  nature  of  the 
country  in  the  Sinai  Peninsula,  where  water 
for  the  use  of  the  troops  had  to  be  hauled, 
where  a  railroad  had  to  be  built,  and  where 
the  historic  camel  held  his  ground  against 
the  modern  automobile  as  a  means  of  trans- 
port, the  dashing  and  pertinacious  Turks 
had  I  een  able  more  than  once  to  get  across 
from  Palestine  to  Suez  with  small  bodies  of 
troops.     In  February,  191 5,  just  as  the  Grand 


months  their  successes  were  uninterrupted. 
By  July  of  191 5  the  expedition  then  under 
command  of  General  Sir  John  Nixon  was 
within  striking  distance  of  Bagdad.  But 
thereupon  misfortune  tell  heavily  upon  them. 
The  British  had  evidently  erred  as  they  did 
at  Antwerp,  and  again  at  the  Dardanelles. 
They  had  sent  a  boy  to  do  a  man's  job. 
Attacked  at  Ctesiphon  by  an  overwhelming 
Turkish  force  the  expedition  was  badly 
beaten  and  under  command  of  Sir  John 
Townshend  forced  to  retreat  some  sixty  miles 
to  a  point  called  Kut-el-Amara.  Here  for 
five  months  it  was  held  so  closely  invested 


Turk  troops  at  (Jallipoli  whit 

Duke  was  beginning  his  campaign,  a  body 
of  Nizams  did  actually  succeed  in  getting 
across  the  desert  carrying  bridging  material 
and  getting  a  foothold  on  the  south  bank  of 
the  Canal  only  to  be  driven  back. 

Most  important  of  the  British  expeditions 
in  Asia  Minor  was  that  into  Mesopotamia, 
begun  early  in  the  war.  The  Euphrates  and 
Tigris  rivers,  uniting  in  the  Shatt-el-Arab, 
H(nv  through  important  oil  fields  belonging 
to  an  English  company.  The  war  had  hardly 
begun  before  the  importance  of  oil  as  a 
munition  of  war  became  apparent,  and  the 
British,  having  taken  the  port  of  Basra  some 
distance  up  the  river,  undertook  an  expedi- 
tion partly  for  the  protection  of  these  oil 
fields  and  partly  to  begin  an  advance  upon 
Bagdad  which  was  destined  to  be  the  ter- 
minus of  the  German  railroad  south  from 
Constantinople.  They  were  opposed  by  the 
Turks    from    the    ver^-    first,    but    for    eight 


h  have  held  the  Allies  at  bay 

that  it  could  be  reached  only  by  aeroplanes. 
Early  in  January,  1916,  a  strong  relief  col- 
umn was  sent  out  to  its  aid.  But  its  path 
was  blocked  by  superior  forces.  In  the  end 
the  beleaguered  British  were  forced  by 
starvation  and  the  exhaustion  of  all  supplies 
to  surrender  on  April  29,  191 6. 

The  war  in  the  irregular  quadrangle, 
bounded  by  the  Black  Sea,  the  Caspian  Sea, 
the  Persian  Gulf,  the  Red  Sea,  and  the  Medi- 
terranean, was  fought  by  the  troops  of  four 
great  nations  and  almost  uncounted  irregular 
forces  representing  various  Ottoman  tribes. 
The  Shah  of  Persia  early  declared  himself 
with  the  Allies,  while  the  Mohammedans  of 
Egypt  and  the  tribes  of  India  proved  to  be, 
if  not  at  heart  altogether  loyal  to  Great 
Britain,  at  least  sufficiently  so  to  give  no 
serious  cause  for  anxiety.  Had  it  been 
otherwise  the  situation  of  the  British,  par- 
ticularh    in    that  section,   would   have  been 


212 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


desperate.  As  it  was,  with  the  exception 
of  a  single  serious  defeat  at  Kut-el-Amara, 
thev  suffered  no  serious  reverse,  and  although 
mainly  on  the  defensive,  saw  the  second 
year  of  the  war  end  with  both  the  Suez  Canal 
and  their  East  Indian  possessions  apparently 
free  from  any  further  menace.  For  the 
Turks  the  situation  was  more  serious.  It 
appeared  that  they  were  to  pay  dearly  for 
their  alliance  with  the  Teutons.  The  Per- 
sians whom  they  looked  upon  as  allies,  and 
the  Arabs  whom  they  regarded  as  their  vas- 


sals, threw  off  their  Turkish  yoke  and  sided 
openly  with  the  Allies.  The  Syrians,  too, 
revolted  against  Turkish  despotism,  and 
through  it  all,  while  the  British  were  content 
with  stubbornly  guarding  their  own,  the 
great  Russian  armies  drove  through  the 
Turkish  territory,  forcing  its  defenders  from 
one  fortified  town  to  another,  capturing 
whole  armies  with  their  guns  and  munitions, 
and  apparently  assured  of  success  in  their 
purpose  of  reducing  Turkey  in  Asia  to  com- 
plete subjection. 


Heliograph  signallers  with  the  Turkish  Army 


Copyriyhtty  Newspaper  Illustration,  Ltd. 


CHRONOLOGY  OF  PERIOD  TREATED  IN  CHAPTER  VII 


October  2g.     Turkey  he(;ins  war  with   Russia  by  honibardinK 

Odessa. 
Novemhi'r  ^.     England   and   France   declare   war  on   Turkey; 

Russians  begui  invasion  of  Armenia. 
November  15.     British    troops    land    in    Basra    province    and 

invade  Arabia. 
November  22.     Turks  in  small  numbers  reach  Suez  Canal. 
December  2^.     Turkish   army  leaves   Damascus  and   marches 

toward  the  Suez  Canal. 
January  9.     Turks   build   railway   across   Sinai    Peninsula   to 

attack  Suez. 

January  27.     The  British  defeat  the  Turks  near  El  ICantara. 
February  3.     Turks,  while  trying  to  cross  the  Canal,  are  routed 

with  heavy  loss,  many  drowned  in  the  Canal. 
February  28.     Turks  withdraw  from  the  Sinai  Peninsula  and 

abandon  the  attack  on  the  Canal. 
March   26.     Turks   massacring   native   Christians   in   various 

parts  of  Persia  and  Armenia.     United  States  Ambassador 

Morgenthau  at  Constantinople  called  upon  for  aid. 
February  25.     British   and   French   fleets  reduce  forts  at  the 

entrance  to  the  Dardanelles. 
February  27.     Forty   British   and   French  warships   penetrate 

the  Dardanelles  for  fourteen  miles. 
March  18.     End    of    British    successes    in    the    Dardanelles. 

British     battleships     Irresitlihle    and     Ocean,    and     French 

battleship  Bouvet,  are  sunk. 
April  ■jo.     British     land     expedition     against     the     (lallipoli 

Peninsula  begun. 


July  7.  Heavy  fighting  between  the  Allies  and  Turks  on  the 
Gallipoli  Peninsula.  British  public  begins  to  doubt  the 
wisdom  or  the  possible  success  of  the  expedition. 

July  24.     British  report  successes  in  southern  Arabia. 

August  1.  Australians  and  New  Zealanders  take  important 
points  in  the  Dardanelles. 

August  25.     Allies   advancing   along   a   twelve-mile   front   on 

the  Gallipoli  Peninsula. 
August  31.     Germans  claim  the  British  have  lost  50,000  men 

in  the  Dardanelles  since  August  6th. 
September  16.     Official   British  figures  show  British  casualties 

at  the  Dardanelles  up  to  .August  21st  to  reach  87,600. 
September    23.     French   and    British    reenforcements    to    the 

number  of  110,000  sent  to  the  Dardanelles. 
October  15.     British  report  96,899  men  lost  at  the  Dardanelles. 
October  19.     Major-General  Monro  succeeds  (leneral  Sir  Ian 

Hamilton  as  British  commander  in  Ciallipoli. 

November  2\.  British  fall  back  when  within  18  miles  o( 
Bagdad  with  loss  of  2,000  men.     Turks  aggressive  thereafter. 

December  3.  British  Mesopotamian  expedition  retires  to 
Kut-el-Amara  and  is  besieged  there. 

January  c).     Allies  abandon  the  Gallipoli  Peninsula. 

January  16.  British  relief  expedition  on  the  Tigris  drives 
Turks  to  within  six  miles  of  Kut-el-Amara. 

February  2.      Floods  check   British   relief  expedition. 

April  2g.  British  surrender  ten  thousand  men  and  equipment 
at  Kut-el-Amara. 


214 


THE    NATIONS    AT     WAR 


*^''  T^, 


msi 


]\i """  li 


t  ..i.yriiihl  by  Uuderwoud  i  UudetwooJ 


Russian  troops  passing  through  Srryj  (Galicia)  aftt-r  the  capture  of  Przemysl 


CHAPTER    VIII 


WARSAW       AND       A1"TER — FAILURE      TO       DESTROY      RUSSIAN       ARMY — 
THE      PROLONGED      RUSSIAN      RETREAT — ^THE      BEAR     TURNS      TO      HAY 

TRANSFER   OF  GRAND-DUKE    NICHOLAS GENERALS   KUROPATKIN   AND 

BRUSSILOV     LEAD    THE     NEW    DRIVE — RECORD    OF    RUSSIAN     SUCCESSES 


HE  fall  of  Warsaw  seemed 
to  mark  the  culmination 
of  the  German  successes 
in  the  campaign  against 
Russia.  It  was  heralded 
widely  throughout  the 
world  as  a  decisive  vic- 
tory, as  indeed  it  was  with 
one  limitation.  That  is 
to  say,  the  Germans  had 
been  successful  in  cap- 
turing the  city  which  had 
been  their  goal  during 
months  of  hard  fighting. 
They  secured  possession 
of  the  political  and  in- 
dustrial capital  of  Rus- 
sian Poland.  They  were 
able  to  announce  to  the 
world  a  success  which 
coming  after  so  long  a 
struggle  could  not  fail  to 
impress  public  opinion 
with  a  new  respect  for 
the  German  arms,  and 
to    enhance    the    morale 

,    ,    ,  ,       of    the    German     army, 

Viceroy  s  body  guard         ^j^;^.j^^  j^^  j^^j^  ^^  ^^^  ^- ^ 

during  this  savage  war,  has  manifested  any 
need  for  improvement. 

But,  on  the  other  hand,  it  was  very  quickly 
demonstrated  by  events  following  the  cap- 
ture of  Warsaw  that  it  was  in  fact  but  half  a 
victory.  It  cannot  be  too  strongly  empha- 
sized in  any  account  of  this  war  that  the 
struggle  at  the  end  of  two  years  has  reached 
only  an  inconclusive  point,  because  while 
cities  and  fortresses  have  been  taken  and 
lost,  while  provinces  have  been  reduced  to 
the  temporary  occupancy  of  an  enemy  and 
again  triumphantly  rescued  by  their  defend- 
ers,  there  has   not   been   one  instance,  save 


■i^^ 


perhaps  that  of  Servia,  in  which  any  consid- 
erable army  of  any  belligerent  has  been  de- 
stroyed. Even  the  Belgian  army,  weak  as 
it  was  in  the  face  of  the  German  aggres.sor, 
still  e.xisted  as  an  effective  fighting  unit  two 
years  after  the  first  fort  fell  at  Liege,  and  in 
August,  1 91 6,  a  fragment  of  the  Servian  army 
was  in  the  field.  Von  Kluck's  advance  upon 
Paris  was  indeed  checked  before  that  city 
became  his  prize.  But  even  had  he  succeeded 
in  his  object,  French  strategy  had  already 
made  ample  preparations  for  the  escape  of 
the  French  army,  and  with  that  army  in 
being  the  defence  of  the  nation  would  have 
continued  even  though  the  German  flag 
floated  over  the  French  capital.  In  our  own 
Civil  War  while  Richmond  was  the  prize 
for  which  Grant's  army  strove  for  more  than 
two  years,  its  capture  would  not  have  ended 
the  war.  Had  not  Lee  clung  to  Richmond 
until  his  army  was  cut  to  pieces,  exhausted, 
and  on  the  verge  of  starvation,  that  war 
might  well  have  been  prolonged  another 
year.  It  was  the  destruction  of  the  armies  of 
the  Confederacy,  not  the  capture  of  its  capi- 
tal, that  brought  peace. 

So  in  occupying  Warsaw,  without  destroy- 
ing the  Russian  army  which  had  defended  it. 
General  von  Hindenburg  failed  of  complete 
success.  Though  the  Russians  were  in  fact 
beaten,  they  nevertheless  were  withdrawn 
from  the  lost  capital  by  the  Grand  Duke 
Nicholas  with  consummate  military  skill 
and  without  serious  shock  to  their  morale. 

In  the  midst  of  their  exultation  over  the 
capture  of  Warsaw  the  Germans  did  not 
lose  sight  of  the  fact  that  with  the  Russian 
armv  still  in  existence  their  victory  was  in- 
complete. Von  Hindenburg  pressed  on  rap- 
idly in  pursuit  of  the  retreating  Russians. 
It  was  his  hope  and  the  hope  then  of  the 
German  people  that   if  this  army  could   be 


2l6 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


overtaken  and  annihilated  Russia  would  be 
willing  to  negotiate  a  separate  peace  and 
leave  the  French  and  English  to  their  fate. 
It  has  been  demonstrated  later  that  this  was 
but  a  futile  aspiration.  Even  had  the  armies 
of  the  Grand  Duke  Ale>cieff  been  annihilated 
the  spirit  of  the  Russian  Government  con- 
templated no  such  retreat  from  the  conflict, 
and  the  patient  ox-like  Russian  peasant  had 


city  and  slipped  out  of  his  clutches.  The 
Germans  followed  swiftly  and  pertinaciously. 
In  some  quarters  it  was  believed  that  this 
retirement  of  the  Russians  in  the  direction 
of  Petrograd  was  in  fact  a  ruse  intended  to 
lure  their  enemies  farther  into  Russian  terri- 
tory where  the  great  distances  and  the 
abominable  roads  would  make  their  move- 
ments difficult,   while  fresh   Russian   troops 


German  Zeppelin  inspecting  Warsaw 


i^I'\rit,'lit  tiy  liidcrvsuod  I'i.  Underwood 


no  thought  in  his  mind  of  refusing  to  obey  the 
orders  of  his  superiors  though  they  carried 
him  to  the  held  of  carnage.  But  as  a  matter 
of  fact  the  Russian  army  was  in  no  real  dan- 
ger of  destruction.  AlexiefF  had  prepared 
many  positions  back  of  Warsaw  to  which 
now  his  army  retreated  and  checked  for  a 
time  the  Teutons  in  their  advance.  One 
by  one  these  positions  were  taken  by  the 
invaders.  At  Vilna,  well  within  Russian 
territory.  Von  Hindenburg  failed  only  nar- 
rowly of  bagging  a  large  force  that  had  taken 
refuge  in  that  fortress.  He  had  surrounded 
it  all  save  for  a  narrow  gap  of  a  few  miles 
only,  when  the  Russians  wisely  abandoned  the 


with  their  store  of  munitions  renewed  would 
be  able  to  cut  them  ofl'  from  communication 
with  their  base. 

1  he  German  press  and  sympathizers  on  the 
other  hand  were  exultant  over  the  Russian 
retreat  and  noisily  claimed  that  within  a  few 
weeks  the  German  armies  would  be  in  Petro- 
grad. But,  as  in  so  many  instances  in  this 
war,  the  triumphant  pursuing  army  seemed 
to  sufFer  more  than  the  one  in  retreat.  Kovno 
and  Grodno,  important  Russian  fortified 
points,  were  indeed  taken  by  the  invaders, 
while  Von  Mackensen,  commanding  the 
southern  end  of  the  German  lines,  took 
Brest-Litowsk,  the  greatest  intrenched  camp 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


217 


in  all  Russia.  Here  he  hoped  to  secure  great 
quantities  of  munitions,  but  in  this  he  was 
disappointed,  for  by  this  time  the  Russian 
armies  had  not  enough  munitions  for  use, 
and  certainly  none  for  storage.  Moreover, 
like  his  colleague.  Von  Hindenburg  to  the 
north,  he  had  faded  to  catch  the  defending 
army  which  slipped  away  and  continued 
its  rear-guard   fighting  until  by   the   end    of 


shells,  and  munitions  of  war  from  the  busy 
factories  of  Japan.  The  Russian  forces 
had  suffered  from  a  dearth  of  skilled  artiller- 
ists, but  during  this  slow  retreat  men  had 
been  tramed  to  the  use  of  the  great  guns, 
and  more  and  more  the  artillery  came  to  be 
an  efficient  aid  to  the  hundreds  of  thousands 
ot  untrained  common  soldiers  whom  the  great 
empue  of  the  north  had  been  able  to  put  into 


Cu[iyrighl  l»y  ITiidcr^uoil  &  b'Ddcrkvijotl 

Prince  Leopold  of  Bavaria,  the  conqueror  of  Warsaw,  riding  at  the  head  of  his  staff  along  one  of  the  principal  streets  of  the  an- 
cient   Polish   capital 


October  the  Germans  had  penetrated  that 
part  of  Russia  almost  to  the  Pripet  River. 
The  long  German  line  then  stretched  from 
the  Baltic  Sea  to  the  Carpathian  Mountains. 
All  of  Russian  Poland  lay  behind  it  and 
bending  out  to  the  westward  it  included  in 
its  bow  thousands  of  square  miles  of  the 
territory  of  Russia  proper.  But  here  it 
stuck.  Further  advance  appeared  impos- 
sible. The  great  bear  that  had  been  walking 
backward  had  turned  with  teeth  and  claw 
to  bay.  The  trains  of  the  Trans-Siberian 
Railroad  had  been  rolling  westward  from 
the  Pacific  bringing  new  supplies  of  cannon. 


the    field.     When    winter   fell    Russia    began 
again  preparations  to  take  the  offensi\e. 

At  this  time  the  Grand  Duke  Nicholas 
was  recalled  from  command  probably  for 
political  reasons  and  the  Czar  in  person  took 
his  place  as  nominal  commander  of  the  Rus- 
sian armies  in  Poland  and  Galicia.  Actu- 
ally Generals  Brussilov  and  Kuropatkin  di- 
rected the  movements  of  the  Russian  armies 
in  the  south  and  north  respectiveix'.  Nicho- 
las meantime  in  Asia  Minor,  by  his  swift 
descent  upon  Erzeroum  and  Trebizond,  gave 
convincing  proof  that  it  was  for  no  lack  of 
soldierl\-  cpialities  or  skilled  generalship  that 


2l8 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Russian  troops  retreating  from  Przeiiiysl  at  the  approach  of  the  Ausrro-Gtrman  forces 


he    had    been    transferred.     His    activity    in 
that  region  indeed  kept  the  Germans  so  busy 
that  they  had  no  time  to  push  an  offensive 
campaign  in   Russia.     The  winter  was  not, 
however,  wholly  inactive.     In  the  west  the 
armies  settled  down  in  the  trenches  merely 
keeping 
watch  of  each 
other  with- 
out    material 
effort  to  gain 
ground.     But 
in    the    east 
the    hostile 
forces     swept 
backward  and 
forward  pass- 
ing   over    the 
same    ground 
time       and 
again  so  that 
in  the  reports 
of  their  oper- 
ations we  find 
the       same 
town  held  by 
both  belliger- 


Austrians  burying  Russian  dead  in  Gallcia.     Note  the  rough  wooden  cross  ready  for 

erection 


ents  two  or  three  times  in  the  course  of  a 
month.  It  was  a  melancholy  and  agonizing 
experience  for  the  people  residing  in  the 
theatre  of  war.  Early  in  the  struggle  the 
Jews  whom  for  one  reason  or  another  the 
Russians  suspected  of  disloyalty  were  expelled 

altogether 
from  that  sec- 
tion. More 
than  a  million 
five  hundred 
thousand 
were  thus 
drnen  from 
their  homes 
without  re- 
sources  to 
seek  a  living 
e  1  s  e  w  li  ere. 
But  the  bar- 
barism of  the 
war  did  not 
fall  upon 
these  hapless 
H  e  b  r  e  w  s 
alone,  fo  r 
Vv'hen  theGer- 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


219 


mans  began  to  march  into  Russian  territory 
the  retreating  Russians  adopted  the  method 
which    caused    the    downfall  of  Napoleon   a 
century  before.    The  country  was  thoroughly 
devastated,  railroads  were  torn  up,  factories 
and  stores  destroyed,  such  crops 
as  were  standing  were    thrown 
down  and  made  unavailable  as 
much  to  the  people  of  the  country 
:;s  to  the  invader.      Three  million 


features  of  this  war  has  been  the  enormous 
use  of  motor  cars  for  military  purposes.     But 
in    Russia    the    automobile    had    never   been 
the  popular  plaything  or  the  useful  adjunct 
to   industry    which    ir   had    been   in   western 
Europe.     During  the  very  first  cam- 
paign the  skilled  men  in  the  Russian 
army  of  the  quality  necessary  for  op- 
erating  automobiles    efficientlv   were 
put  out  of  action.      British,    French, 


^t-swei^^- 


A  liasty  mcai  by  the  wayside  in  Russia.      Soldiers  receiving  lood  trom  a  camp  kitchen  ut  the  purtable  type.      1  he  Russian  com- 
missary is  much  lesscomphcated  than  that  ol  the  Germans  because  the  Russian  is  content  with  simple  food 


civilians  fled  to  the  interior  of  Russia  with 
no  idea  as  to  what  they  might  do  there,  but 
hopmg  for  some  chance  of  saving  their  lives. 
The  country  thus  laid  waste  comprised  a 
strip  nearly  three  hundred  miles  wide  and 
eight  hundred  miles  long — an  empire  equal 
practically  in  extent  to  that  comprised  be- 
tween Boston  and  Detroit  with  Albany  and 
Buffalo  on  the  north  and  Pittsburg  and 
Philadelphia  on  the  south  as  boundary 
points.  During  the  winter  the  main  task 
of  the  Russian  armies  was  to  refit  and  to 
prepare  for  a  great  advance  in  the  spring. 
i  heir  transportation  system  had  broken 
down    badly.     One    of    the    most     striking 


Belgian,  and  even  Japanese  military  auto- 
mobilists  and  aviators  were  sent  to  take 
charge  of  the  armored  motors  and  aeroplanes. 
By  way  of  recompense  for  this  Russia  sent 
six  army  corps  of  her  surplus  troops  to  France 
who  entered  that  country  by  way  of  .Mar- 
seilles, creating  a  tremendous  sensation  in 
military  circles.  Even  with  this  addition 
to  its  expert  services  Russia  was  still  handi- 
capped by  lack  of  aircraft  and  observers. 
For  this  reason  the  early  spring  months  were 
devoted  to  feeling  out  the  enemy's  lines  in 
preparation  for  the  great  offensive  to  come 
later.  But  these  smaller  battlt-s,  making 
up  indeed  a  very  considerable  record  of  their 


220 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


J- 


iii4sfe^.  _ 


fff 


«r 


it>  _   . 

P 

i 

I'f 

if 

Citrman  artillery  advancing  un  Warsaw 


own  for  the  numbers  engaged  and  the  num- 
bers sacrificed,  bad  no  effect  on  tbe  progress 
of  tbe  war.  Indeed  the  Russians  themselves 
at  that  time,  though  planning  for  a  spring 
offensive,  apprehended  that  the  Germans 
might  take  the  lead  with  a  drive  on  Petro- 
grad.  As  it  turned  out  the  Germans  had 
tried  to  crack  so  hard  a  nut  at  Verdun  that 
they  had  no  mind  nor  men  wherewith  to  un- 
dertake an  offensive  elsewhere. 


German  transports  in  the  campaign  against  Warsaw 


June  I,  1916,  the  great  Russian  army  of  not 
less  than  1,500,000  men  stepped  forward 
unitedly  in  an  attack  upon  the  German  line. 
That  line  extended  from  the  front  of  Riga 
on  the  Baltic  Sea  almost  directly  south  to 
Czernowitz  in  Austria-Hungary.  The  fight- 
ing was  heaviest  on  the  southern  half  of  the 
line  on  which  lay  the  cities  which  more 
than  once  had  been  the  object  of  savage 
fighting,  Pinsk,  Dubno,  and  Tarnopol.  Here 
the  forces  opposed  to 
the  Russians  were 
mainly  Austrians, 
only  two  out  of  ten 
army  corps  being  Ger- 
man. The  success  of 
the  Russians  was  im- 
mediate and  contin- 
uous. The  Austrian 
lines  were  rolled  back 
day  after  day  and  pris- 
oners bv  the  thousands 
were  taken.  Checked 
for  a  time  on  the  River 
Stokhod,  they  shifted 
the  attack  to  the  south 
and  captured  the  con- 
siderable Hungarian 
city  of  Czernowitz. 
The  fortresses  at 
Dubno    and    Lutsk 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


221 


(iL  1111.111  tniin> ,  mult  I  I  niu  i.il  Mill  i  limitnliiiri;  cm  rlu-  march  niuard  \\  arsaw 


which  had  been  lost  in  the  preceding  sum- 
mer were  retaken,  and  by  the  latter  part  of 
June  it  appeared  that  the  entire  Austrian 
hne  was  to  be  swept  away  in  one  vast 
indiscriminate  rout.  The  number  of  pris- 
oners taken  before  the  end  of  June  ex- 
ceeded 200,000.  Guns,  ammunition,  and  sup- 
plies of  every  sort  were  a  rich  prize  to  the 
Russians  who  without  manufactures  of 
their    own    found    every    captured    cannon 

precious     booty.     Be-      _     

fore  the  ist  of  July 
the  crests  of  the  Car- 
pathians saw  again  the 
standards  of  Russian 
regiments  of  which 
they  had  been  cleared 
a  year  before. 

A  correspondent  of 
the  London  Times  ac- 
companied General 
Brussilov's  columns  on 
their  successful  drive 
into  the  province  of 
Bukovina.  He  de- 
clared the  Russian 
spirit  and  dash  to  be 
almost  incredible.  At 
various  points  they 
were  fighting  against 
odds   sometimes  of 


three  to  one.  By  direction  of  their  officers 
they  were  sparing  of  their  munitions.  The 
new  Russian  rifle  was  equipped  with  a  thirty- 
inch  bayonet  fixed  to  the  muzzle  of  the 
weapon  and  never  taken  off.  With  this  in 
the  main  they  charged  their  enemy  and  drove 
him  from  his  trenches.  Many  militarv 
authorities  have  given  expression  to  their 
appreciation  of  the  extraordinary  gallantry  of 
the  Russian  infantry.    They  had  to  go  against 


Kussjans  captured  at  Prasznysz 


222 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Copyright  by  Uncienvood  &  Underwood 

Russian  Black  Sea  troops  going  into  action 


trenches  and  barbed-wire  entanglements  with- 
out the  aid  of  the  heavy  artillery  preparation 


war. 
these 


which  always  pre- 
ceded such  an  at- 
tack in  the  western 
theatre  of  war. 
None  the  less  the 
Russian  peasant 
dull  and  uncompre- 
hending as  he  is  sup- 
posed  to  be,  re- 
sponded even  cheer- 
fully to  the  appeals 
of  his  officers  and 
with  almost  Oriental 
fatalism  rushed  into 
the  face  of  appar- 
ent certain  death 
until  victory  was  as- 
sured. That  Russia 
exceeded  any  of  the 
other  belligerents, 
perhaps  any  two 
combined,  in  the 
number  of  men  cap- 
able of  bearmg  arms 
was  known  at  the 
beginning  of  the 
But  that  in  so  brief  a  space  of  time 
farmers  and  peasants  could  be  drilled 


How  the  Russians  retreated  in  haste  before  the  great  German  advance 


5^  ^.^. 

hi  by  Underwgod  $i  Undenvood 


THE    NATIONS 

antl  disciplined  until  they  formed  a  coherent 
fighting  force  with   the    quality 
of  veterans  amazed  the  military 
world. 

"  Ihe  only  thing,"  said  a  Ger- 
man    officer     once 
speaking  of  the   Rus- 
sian soldiers  in  attack, 
"you     can     do    is    to 
slaughter  tluni  and 
pray   that  \  ou  will 
have  ammunition  enough 
to     keep     it     up."     War- 
time   observers     speaking 
of  the  Russian  soldier  seem 
always  to  treat  of  him  in 
the  mass.     They  lay  stress 
on      the      individual     re- 
sourcefulness  and   dogged 
pertinacity  of  the  English  "Tommy."     The 
French  "poilu"  they  find  gay,  gallant,  dash- 
ing in  bravery  though  with  a  lack  of  perti- 
nacity.    The  Italian  manifests  great  ferocii\- 
but  is  easily  discouraged.     The  German  will 
go    anywhere    his    officers    will    lead    him  — 
but  he  must  be  led.     Discipline  has  driven 
individual  ini:ia:ive  out  of  the  German  head. 


223 


1  lie  King,  Qucin,  .Tiul  Crown  Prince  of  Koumania. 
Roiimania's  entrance  into  the  war  on  tiie  side  of  the  Allies 
and  her  spectacular  invasion  of  I'ransylvania  in  September, 
1916,  were  the  outcome  of  two  years"  negotiations 


1  he  importance  of  Vilna.      This  bridge  over  the  River  \'ilna  is  the  only  bridge  in  a  radius  of  100  miles  that  i;. 
bear  the  heavy  artillery  which  is  so  strong  an  <  b  mimt  of  Girman  military  pov. 


224 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


But  when  the  first-hand  observers  come  to 
speak  of  the  Russians,  they  tell  of  their 
bovine  patience  and  fatalism  but  lay  chief 
stress  upon  their  infinitude  of  numbers — 
their  slow-moving,  terrifying,  irresistible 
mass.  The  French  leap  to  the  charge  like 
an  avalanche.  The  Russians  advance  like  a 
resistless    glacier.     You    think    of    them    in 


indomitable  will — a  real  man  of  blood  and 
iron  this,  best  worthy  of  that  title  in  Prussia 
since  Bismarck.  Nor  could  there  be  any 
thought  of  sending  German  regiments  from 
France  to  the  hard-pressed  Austrians.  There 
Verdun  was  holding  the  Teutonic  foe  in  play 
with  a  vengeance.  Of  little  strategic  value 
in    itself,    this    French    fortress   had   enlisted 


-^^ 


-«5j^>^.'X»i^- 


?^^J 


■■Tr ; 

N 


A  field  of  bayonets  on  the  Polish  frontier 


T^>'-: 


Copyrui 


■  lod  iS;  Underwood 


lines  ten  or  twelve  deep,  line  after  line,  and 
all  with  the  fearlessness  that  fatalism  alone 
breeds. 

All  the  way  from  Riga  to  the  Roumanian 
line  this  remorseless  pressure  was  being  ap- 
plied to  the  Teutonic  lines.  It  was  most 
savage  m  the  south  where  the  troops  of 
General  Brussilov  were  in  contact  with  the 
Austrians.  There  could  at  this  time  be  no 
retnforcement  of  the  troops  of  Francis 
Joseph  from  the  German  lines,  for  in  the 
north  Kuropatkin  was  pressing  hotly  on 
grizzled  old  Von  Hindenburg,  who  stood 
savagely  at  ba\-  while  the  population  of 
Berlin  was  childishly  driving  nails  into  his 
-.vuoden  effigy  in  token  of  admiration  for  his 


the  bloody  efforts  of  France  and  Germany  in  a 
struggle  which  had  already  endured  for 
months,  and  in  fact  outlasted  the  second  year 
of  the  war.  Its  reduction  and  its  defence 
had  become  a  matter  of  pride,  a  fetish,  a 
religious  obsession  almost  to  the  two  warring 
foes.  "If  we  take  Verdun  we  win  the  war," 
said  the  Germans,  though  no  military  strate- 
gist has  been  able  to  point  out  the  reason 
for  such  a  belief.  "They  shall  not  pass!" 
was  the  French  cry  when  the  assault  on 
Verdun  was  mentioned,  and  the  French  made 
their  contention  good.  Moreover,  they  held 
so  many  of  the  Teutons  in  the  salient  of 
St.  Mihiel  and  the  hills  about  Verdun  that 
the  endangered  Austrians  cried   in  vain  for 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


225 


aid  from  that  section.  It  was  becoming 
apparent  to  the  onlookmg  world  that  at  last 
the  Alhed  campaign  was  being  urged  offen- 
sively along  all  the  fronts  at  once  as  though 
directed  by  a  single  master  mind. 

It  was,  indeed,  in  the  very  course  of  per- 
fecting that  coherence  of  action  among  the 
Allies   that  Great    Britain    lost   her  greatest 


of  Lord  Kitchener's  death  nothing  is  known 
nor  was  his  body  ever  recovered. 

More  than  any  man  in  England  at  the 
outset  of  the  war,  Kitchener  foresaw  its 
proportions  and  duration.  Three  years  he 
thought  would  be  its  least  duration,  and,  be- 
ing entrusted  with  building  up  the  British 
army,  he  built  it  with  a  view  to  a  long-drawn 


Cojn  rijjht  t)>  Undcrivood  &  Underwcod 

^^rhlan   intantr\nien  arrive  in  Warsaw  in  time  to  check  the  German  attacic 


military  figure  of  modern  times,  Field  Marshal 
Lord  Horatio  Herbert  Kitchener,  British  Secre- 
tary for  War,  "K  of  K."  as  the  man  in  the 
street  loved  to  call  him  in  abbreviation  of  his 
earlier  title  Lord  Kitchener  of  Khartoum. 
It  was  illustrative  of  the  far-spread  nature  of 
this  w^ar  that  this  soldier  whose  fame  had 
been  won  in  South  Africa  should  meet  death 
in  the  icy  seas  off  the  Orkneys  whde  en  route 
for  Petrograd  to  consult  about  Russian  oper- 
ations in  Poland  and  Galicia.  His  ship,  the 
British  cruiser  Hampshire,  struck  a  mine 
June  5th,  and  went  down  with  all  on  board 
except  a  warrant  officer  and  eleven  seamen, 
who  were  picked  up  later  on  a  raft  nearly 
dead  from  exposure.     Of  the  precise  manner 


struggle.  The  impatient  public,  and  a  part 
of  the  press,  attacked  him  vehementK-  for 
deliberation,  for  stubbornly  refusing  to  rush 
half-tramed  troops  to  the  front,  for  putting 
solid  organization  and  adequate  equipment 
ahead  of  action  in  the  field.  But  he  beat 
down  opposition  and  attack  and  before  his 
death  saw  his  policy  on  the  threshold  of 
success  and  already  commanding  universal 
approval.  It  was,  doubtless,  a  tribute  to  his 
influence,  not  only  in  Britain  but  in  all  the 
allied  countries,  that  the  plan  of  joint  and 
simultaneous  offensive  by  all  the  powers 
which  he  had  started  for  Petrograd  to  urge, 
was  followed  vigorously  after  his  death. 

In   the   two   months  of  the    Russian   drive 


226 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Resting  among  the  dead.  Austro-Hungarian  soldiers  detailed  to  clear 
the  field  after  a  battle  sit  down  on  a  hillside  for  a  brief  rest,  while  the  dead  Rus- 
sians He  all  around  them 


ume  and  steady  continuation  of  his  artillery 
fire  told  convincingly  of  the  Russian  recog- 
nition of  their  blunder  of  the  year  before 
when  the}'  tried  to  carry  this  same  territory 
with  an  insufficient  supply  of 
ammunition.  But  he  followed 
his  artillery  attack  not  only  with 
infantry  assaults,  but  with  cav- 
alry raids  that  turned  his  en- 
emy's flanks,  menaced  his  com- 
munications, and  left  to  his  shat- 
tered legions  no  time  for  rest  or 
for  repairs.  The  extended  field 
wherein  Brussilov  commanded 
was  as  full  of  change  as  a  kalei- 
doscope. It  was  the  very  an- 
tithesis of  the  area  of  battle  in 
France  and  in  Flanders. 

The  Austrian  provinces  which 
felt  most  heavily  the  force  of  the 
Russian  rally  and  advance  are 
known  as  Galicia  and  Bukovina. 
Virtually  they  are  a  single  geo- 
graphical region  cut  ofi"  from  the 
rest  of  Austria  and  Hungary  by 
the  high  wails  of  the  Carpathian 
Mountains.  Their  population 
that  preceded  the  second  anniversary  of  contains  many  Slavs,  Czechs,  Poles,  and  Cer- 
the  outbreak  of  the  war,  the  forces  of  the  vaks,  and  it  was  a  significant  fact  that  among 
Czar  carried  all  before  them  along  that  the  prisoners  taken  by  the  Russians  were 
section  of  the  line  which  was  selected  for  very  few  of  these  nationalities.  The  reason 
an  advance.  Gen- 
eral Brussilov  had 
been  a  cavalry 
leader  in  the  earlier 
days  of  service,  and 
in  pushing  back  the 
Teutons  in  this  cam- 
paign brought  that 
arm  of  the  service 
into  active  play,  al- 
most for  the  first 
time  in  this  war 
which  had  been 
fought  mainly  by 
artillery  and  infan- 
try. His  movements 
were  swift  and  un- 
expected. He  em- 
ployed to  the  fullest 
the  now  established 
tactics  of  first  over- 
whelming his  en- 
emy's trenches  with 

tlOOdS    or     snell    and         llundredsof  Russians  in  one  grave.       A  corner  of  a  great  trench  dug  on  a  battlefield  in  Galicia, 
shrapnel.        Ine  vol-  wherein  large  numbers  of  Russians  were  buried  together 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


227 


for  tlieii"  absence  seems  to  have  been  that 
Incause  of  their  manifest  sympathy  for  their 
brother  Slavs  in  the  Russian  armies,  they 
were  sent  away  from  that  battle  front  as 
untrustworthy.  The  troops  of  which  they 
formed  a  great  part  were  employed  on  the 
Italian  front,  because  between  them  and  the 
Italians  was  no  racial  sympathy. 

Czernowitz,  the  capital  of  Bukovina,  fell 
into  Russian  occupation  June  16,  1916. 
Tliough  a  considerable  city  it  is  singularly 


ress  in  that  section  of  Hungary  was  un- 
checked. The  River  Pruth  was  crossed  with 
the  Austrians  flying  in  dismay.  Kolomea,  a 
notable  railroad  centre,  was  taken.  Kuro- 
patkin  in  the  north  was  pushing  back  Von 
Hindenburg  as  successfully  as  Brussilov  in 
the  south.  Yet  it  was  the  successes  of  the 
latter  that  rendered  possible  the  advance  of 
the  former,  for  the  whole  Teutonic  line, 
extending  from  north  to  south,  rested  like  a 
balanced  pole  upon  the 
an  armies  in  (jalicia. 
fast  as  Brussilov  pushed 


licM  giui  ijvuturned  by  a  shell.     Russian  artillerymen  cniluavurin^  lo  [)i:ht  a  yiin  ca|)sizi;il  by  a  ternhf  explosion 


pathians,  being  reached  by  a  single  railroad 
only.  This  railroad  the  Russians  cut  early 
in  the  siege,  not  only  isolating  the  city,  but 
cutting  off  the  only  practical  line  of  retreat 
for  its  defenders.  They  might  indeed  flee 
through  the  steep  and  narrow  Carpathian 
passes  pursued  by  Cossacks,  but  in  the  end 
they  determined  to  surrender  and  join  the 
rapidly  growing  colony  cf  captive  Austrians 
within  the  Russian  lines.  It  is  interesting, 
by  the  way,  to  note  that,  including  this 
garrison  of  Czernowitz,  the  forces  under 
General  Brussilov  took  during  their  nine 
weeks'  campaign  in  Galicia  and  Bukovina 
358,000  officers  and  men,  405  cannon,  1,326 
muchinc  gun.s,  and  a  vast  amount  of  other 
materi;/!  of  war. 

After  th;  fall  of  Czer.icwitz  Russian  prog- 


back  the  latter,  or  weakened  them  by  his 
constant  attacks,  the  pole  would  necessarily 
be  drawn  to  the  westward  lest  it  fall  alto- 
gether. When  the  second  year  of  the  war 
ended  the  Russians  were  once  more  within 
striking  distance  of  Lemberg,  an  Austrian 
city  of  enormous  strategical  value,  from 
which  they  had  been  driven  a  vear  before. 

Austria  was  now  in  a  dire  state.  The  terri- 
tory she  had  lost  was  not  material  to  the 
progress  of  the  war,  but  her  losses  in  men  and 
material  threatened  her  with  complete  col- 
lapse. Her  own  reserves  were  exhausted. 
Her  military  authorities  in  June  vainly  ap- 
pealed to  the  government  for  authority  to 
call  into  active  serv'ice  men  of  the  class  be- 
tween fifty-six  and  sixty  years  of  age.  She 
could  hope  nothing  more  from  Germany,  for 


228 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Cu[.yriglit  by  Umlerwood  &■  Underwood 

Result  ot  bombs  diuppcd  in  Warsaw  by  German  aviators 


by  this  rime  the  g;reat  Allied  ofFen- 
sive  on  the  western  front  had  begun 
and  tine  Germans  were  even  check- 
ing their  attack  on  Verdun  to  meet 
this  new  menace.  In  the  south 
Austria  had  to  meet  the  steady  pres- 
sure of  the  Italians,  who,  long  held 
in  check  by  the  precipitous  barrier 
of  the  Dolomites,  had  by  this  time 
learned  to  negotiate  those  mountain 
passes  and  were  threatening  Gor- 
izia,  the  gate  to  Trieste.  Moreover, 
late  in  July  it  became  apparent  that 
the  Allies  were  not  going  to  leave 
Servia  to  her  fate.  The  shattered 
army  of  that  nation,  having  been 
reorganized  on  the  Island  of  Corfu, 
its  wounds  bound  up,  its  depleted 
ranks  filled,  its  equipment  renewed, 
had  been  transferred  to  Salonika. 
There,  too,  were  gathering  British, 
French,  and  Italian  troops  so  that 
by  the  ist  of  August,  the  beginning 
of  the  third  year  of  the  war,  not  less 
than  600,000  Allied  troops  were 
ready  to  begin  the  great  drive 
through  Servia  to  the  Hungarian 
frontier. 

Never  in  the  course  of  the  war 
had  the  outlook  been  so  black  for 
the  Dual  Monarchy  and  for  the 
Teutonic  alliance  as  then.  There 
were  constant  rumors  that  Hun- 
gary would  split  away  from  Austria, 


Ten  thousand  Russian  prisoners  in  one  column  captured  in  one  of  the  battles  in  Galicia 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


229 


dismember  the  Dual  Monarchy,  and 
sue  for  a  separate  and  indcpindint 
peace.  Again  it  was  suggested  that 
both  Austria  and  Hungary  might 
sue  for  peace  leaving  Germany  to 
continue  the  conflict.  Both  rumors 
were  scouted  at  both  \  lenna  and 
Berlin,  and  the  year  ended  without 
cither  being  given  substance.  But 
the  situation  was  unquestionably 
one  of  the  gravest  import  to  the 
Central  Powers.  With  all  her  won- 
derful sacrihces  of  treasure  and  of 
men  Imperial  Germany  could  not 
alwavs  go  on  upholding  weak  and 
inefficient  allies.  But  for  military 
commanders,  and  tens  of  thousands 
of  men  sent  into  Galicia,  Austria 
would  have  been  crippled  by  the 
first  Russian  drive,  and  obliterated 
by  the  second.  But  even  the  amaz- 
ing resourcefulness  and  self-sacrifice 
of  the  German  nation  did  not  seem 
able  to  keep  this  record  up  long. 

1  he  persistency  with  which  the 
Russians  returned  to  the  attack  after 
two  great  and  far  reaching  defeats 
caused  the  admiration  of  all  the 
military  world.  Not  the  officers 
alone,  but  the  troops  in  the  ranks 
manifested  this  constant  aversion  to 
any  admission  of  defeat.  On  the 
retreat  from  Warsaw  the  corres- 
pondent    of     the     London      Times 


Copyriuhl  by  I'n  i  lvr\\>    li 

Famous  church  of  Roketno,  near  Warsaw,  destroyed  1>>   uiulUiy  fightiny 
between  Russians  and  Germans 


Russian  prisoners  at  Doberitz,  near  Berlin 


230 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


GENKRAL  ALEXEI  A.  BRUSSILOV 

Commander  of  the  Russian  drive  against  the  Austrians  in  southern  Russia,   Bukovina,  and  Galicia  which  heralded  the 

concerted  offensive  of  the  Allies  on  the  eastern,  western  and  southern  fronts  in  the  summer  of  1916 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


231 


thought  to  test  the  fighting  spirit  of  all  of 
the  retreating  Russian  soldiers.  He  de- 
scribes the  inter\ie\v  thus: 

At  one  pomt  in  the  road  I  stopped  the 
motor  to  talk  with  the  soldiers  of  the  Thirt\- 
fifth  Corps,  the  last  unit  of  which  had  just 
crossed  the  river  that  morning  and  had  been 
badly  dusted.  The  colonel  of  the  regiment 
was  sitting  on  his  horse  in  the  middle  of  a 
field  with  notebook  in  hand  checking  up  his 
losses.  1  he  soldiers  ot  his  command  were 
lying  along  the  grassy  bank  by  the  roadside, 
many  of  them  falling  asleep  the  moment  they 
sat  down.  A  field  kitchen  was  halted  in  the 
road,  and  the  few  soldiers  that  were  not 
asleep  were  hning  up  to  get  what  was  per- 
haps their  first  ration  since  the  night  before. 
Many  were  in  bloody  bandages  and  all  worn 
and  haggard.  "Here,"  I  thought,  "one  will 
find  the  morale  of  the  Russians  at  its  lowest 
ebb.  These  men  have  been  fighting  for 
days  and  have  lost."  So  I  called  up  a  great 
strapping  private  soldier.     Wearily  he  got  to 


his  feet  and  came  over  to  the  side  of  the 
motor.  His  face  was  gray  with  fatigue  and 
his  eyes  glassy  for  want  of  rest.  "How  do 
you  feel  now  about  the  war.?"  I  asked  him. 
"Do  you  want  peace?"  He  looked  at  me  in 
a  dazed  kind  of  way  and  replied  as  he  shuffled 
his  feet  uneasily:  "We  are  all  very  tired." 
"  But,  still,  what  do  you  want  to  do  about 
the  war.?"  I  persisted.  The  Russians  are 
not  quick  to  reply  to  questions  under  any 
circumstances.  For  a  long  time  the  tired 
soldier  looked  at  me,  and  then  for  the  second 
time  he  said:  "I  am  very  tired.  We  are  all 
very  tired."  "Well,  then,"  I  said,  "do  you 
want  to  make  peace  and  leave  the  Germans  in 
possession  of  Warsaw?"  For  a  long  time 
he  stood  in  the  hot  afternoon  sun  looking  at 
the  dust  in  the  road  and  then  replied:  "I 
am  very  tired.  So  are  we  all.  The  Germans 
are  taking  Warsaw  to-day.  This  is  not  as  it 
should  be.  I  think  I  am  a  better  soldier  than 
the  German.  With  rifles  and  shells  we  can 
always  beat  him.  It  is  not  right  that  we 
should  give  up  Warsaw."  He  paused  for  a 
moment  and  then  looked  up  with  his  eyes 
flashing  as  he  finished  in  one  quick  burst 
"Never!  I  am  tired,  but  I  want  to  go  back 
and  fight  some  more.  We  cannot  leave  the 
Germans  in  \\  arsaw." 

Whether  or  not  this  soldier  was  the  type 
of  the  Russian  under  arms  can  only  be  con- 
jectured from  the  fact  that  a  verv  few  weeks 
after  this  defeat  the  Russian  army  gathered 
itself  togetherand began  again  its  marchto 
the  westward,  a  march  that  had  not  ended 
when    the    second 
year  of   the    war 
reached  its  close. 


Polish  farmhouse  hred  by  retreating  Russians 


232 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


A  device  of  the  highly  efficient  Russian  Commissaty  depattment.     Cattle  being  driven  to  the  Russian  army  when  it  was  in 
Galicia.      Beef  in  this  form  requires  no  wagons  for  carriage  and  after  it  is  used  leaves  no  "empties"  to  be  brought  back 


CHRONOLOGY  OF  PERIOD  TREATED  IN  CHAPTER  VIII 


(After  the  fall  of  Warsaw,  on  August  5,  191;,  there  was  a 
steady  retreat  on  the  part  of  the  Russians  until  mid-winter; 
then  the  belligerents  rested  on  their  arms  until  the  commence- 
ment of  Brussilov's  counter  offensive  beginning  in  June,  1916. 
During  this  period  of  comparative  inaction  there  were  but  few 
events  of  sufficient  importance  to  chronicle.) 
August  1012.     Rapid    advance    of   the    Germans    along    the 

Bug  River  to  Sledice  sixty  miles  east  of  Warsaw. 
August  16.     Russian  line  broken   at   Bialystok  with  evacua- 
tion of  the  town. 
August  17.     Kovoro  occupied  by  Germans. 
August!^.     Brest-Litowsk  taken  by  Germans. 
September  2.     House-to-house  fighting  in  Gorodno,  which  is 

taken  by  the  Germans. 
September  I-IO.      Russian  turns  at  Tarnopol  and  Trembowla 

and  captures  33,000  .Austrians  and  fifty  machine  guns. 
September  15.     Tinsk  occupied  by  Germans. 
September  18.     Vilna  falls  and  Russian  army  narrowly  escapes. 
September  2}.     Russians  reoccupy  Lutsk. 
October  18.     Germans  attempt  to  envelop  Riga. 
November  10.     Russians  relieve  Riga. 
November  20.     Russians  successful  on  the  River  Styr. 
December  II.     Russians  attacking  in  Volhynia. 
December  28.     Russians     attack     fiercely    on     the     Dneister, 

marking  the  beginning  of  renewed  fighting  in  that  section. 
January  2,  1916.     Russians  advancing  on  Czernowitz. 
January  12.     Russians  resume  ofl^ensive  in  Bukovina. 
January  20.     Russians  still  advancing  in  Czernowitz. 
February  8.     Russians  active  at  Tarnopol. 
February  II.     Russian  successes  continue  in  Galicia. 
March  19.     Germans  repulse  Russian   attacks  east  of  Vilna; 

nearly  ten  thousand  Russians  killed  at  Lake  Narocz. 


March  23.  Russian  armies  m  Galicia  and  Bukovina  continue 
to  advance.     German  line  pierced  in  the  Riga  region. 

April  12.     Germans  repulsed  near  Pinsk. 

April  2r).  Germans  take  Russian  positions  near  Lake  Narocz 
with  nearly  six  thousand  prisoners. 

(June  ^.  The  Russian  offensive  under  General  Brussilov 
began  on  this  date  with  assaults  against  the  Austrian  line 
on  a  front  of  335  miles  running  south  from  the  Pinsk  marshes. 
It  ultimately  developed  into  an  assault  against  the  450-mile 
front  of  the  Germans  north  of  Pinsk.  More  than  2,400,000 
Teutons  were  involved  ot  whom  600,000  were  put  out  of 
action  largely  by  capture.  The  purpose  of  the  drive  was 
the  destruction  of  the  Teutonic  armies,  not  the  capture  of 
strategic  points.  Nevertheless,  by  August,  fully  7,000 
square  miles  of  Russian  territory  had  been  recovered  from 
the  Teutons,  and  Cossacks  had  made  their  way  into  Hun- 
gary through  the  Caipathian  Passes.) 

June  5-12.     Russian  offensive  captures  85,000  Austrians,  takes 
and  invests  Czernowitz. 

Russians  attack  the  Austrian  centre  at  Buczacs. 
Russians  under  General  Lechitsky  capture  Czern- 


Dubno 
June  14. 
Juney-j. 

owitz. 
June  25 
June  28 


Russians  clear  Bukovina  of  Austrian  defenders. 
Serious  Austrian  defeat  at  Kolomea;  Russians  pass 

the  Stirpa. 

July '}.     Russians  within  twenty  miles  of  Lemberg. 
July  6.     Teuton  losses  before  the  Brussilov  drive  fixed  officially 

at  500,000. 
July  7.     Russians  begin  offensive  on  the  Riga  front. 
July  II.     General    Kuropatkin    attacks   Von    Hindenburg   in 

the  Riga  section,  penetrating  his  lines  five  miles. 
July  28.     Russians  take  Brody. 

July  29.     Report  that  .Austrians  are  forced  to  bring  Turkish 
troops  to  their  aid  in  Hungary. 


THE     NATIONS     AT    WAR 


Conquering  the  Alps.     The  Alpini  at  the  foot  of  the  Dolomites 


CHAPTER    IX 


THE     WAR     IN     THE     BALKANS FAILURE     OF     BRITISH     DII'LUMACY 

BULGARIA     ENTERS    THE     WAR THE     BULGAR-TEUTON     INVASION    OF 

SERVIA — DESTRUCTION     OF    THE     SERVIAN     ARMY THE      PLAGUE     IN 

SERviA — Italy's      long     hesitation  —  progress     of      Italian 

CAMPAIGN — fall    OF   GORIZIA THE   COMPLICATED   CASE    OF    GREECE 


'N  THE  last  analysis 
the  war  which  engulfed 
the  most  highly  civi- 
lized nations  of  Europe 
sprung  from  the  jeal- 
ousies and  the  rival 
ambitions  of  the  half- 
civilized  peoples  who 
make  up  the  Balkan 
States  —  what  the 
diplomatists  call  the 
cauldron  of  Europe. 
Slav  and  Magyar  and 
Czech  in  those  moun- 
tainous and  turbulent 
regions,  in  manv  of 
which  a  nomad's  rifle 
is  his  only  law,  and  a 
hillside  hut  of  boulders 
the  type  of  home, 
struggled  for  the  mas- 
tery, and  plotted  their 
alliances  with  the 
greater  powers  to  the 
northward,  who  in  turn  thought  only  of 
swallowing  them  up.  Servia  blocked  the 
way  of  Austria  to  the  ^Egean  Sea — hence 
t!ie  Austrian  attack  on  that  country  which 
precipitated  the  whole  conflict.  Servia 
blocked  the  German  path  to  Constantinople, 
and  William  U,  full  of  his  great  adventure 
of  making  Turkey  practically  a  province  of 
the  German  empire,  lent  ready  aid  to  the 
Austrian  assault  on  Servia  if  indeed  he  did 
not  inspire  it. 

Classed  among  the  Balkan  States  are  Servia, 
Bulgaria,  Roumania,  Montenegro,  Albania, 
and  Macedonia.  The  Powers  of  Europe 
by  solemn  treaty  had  created  two  addi- 
tional states,  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina,  but 
Austria  had  later  calmlv  annexed  these  two 


states  to  her  dominion  and  the  readiness  of 
Germany  at  the  time  to  back  her  up  to  the 
point  of  a  general  war  had  stifled  protest  from 
the  other  powers.  Turkey,  the  immediate 
neighbor  of  the  Balkan  States,  if  itself  not  to 
be  classed  as  one,  entered  the  war  in  Novem- 
ber, 1914.  Greece,  whose  interests  were 
vitally  concerned,  managed  to  stay  out  of  the 
struggle  until  after  the  close  of  its  second  year. 
Her  people  were  strongly  in  favor  of  joining 
the  Allies,  but  the  queen,  wife  of  King  Con- 
stantine,  was  a  Hohenzollern  princess,  sister 
of  Kaiser  Wilhelm,  and  her  influence  over 
her  husband  long  offset  public  opinion. 

From  the  very  first  days  of  the  war  the 
diplomatic  efforts  of  the  belligerent  parties 
were  exerted  to  the  utmost  to  secure  the  sup- 
port of  these  states.  Turkey,  as  we  have 
seen,  was  early  won  over  bv  the  Germans. 
Bulgaria  with  an  army  in  time  of  war  of 
about  600,000  men  was  a  prize  worth  strug- 
gling for,  but  like  Turkey,  was  secured  by 
the  Teutons,  declaring  war  in  October,  191 5. 
The  Bulgarian  premier  gave  a  series  of  plaus- 
ible reasons  for  the  choice,  the  chief  being 
dread  of  Russian  aggressions  after  the  war 
should  the  Allies  be  victorious.  The  real 
reason,  however,  seems  to  have  been  that 
at  the  moment  the  fortunes  of  war  were 
strongly  on  the  Teutonic  side.  The  pro- 
longed delay  of  Great  Britain  in  getting  into 
the  war  on  land  had  permitted  the  Teutons 
to  score  an  almost  uninterrupted  series  of 
victories  which  seriously  affected  the  prestige 
of  the  .Allies  among  nations  still  hesitant 
as  to  the  side  with  which  to  cast  their  lot. 
It  was  this  that  lost  Bulgaria  to  the  Allies, 
and  kept  Greece  so  long  uncommitted. 
Though  not  within  the  scope  of  this  volume, 
it  may  be  noted  that  in  August,  1916,  after 
the  war  had  continued  more  than  two  years, 


235 


236 


THE     NATIONS     AT     WAR 


Roumania  cast  her 
strength  with  the 
Allies — for  the  obvious 
reason  that  at  that 
moment  their  cause 
looked  by  far  the 
brighter. 

In  the  earlier  clays 
of  the  war  Servia, 
which  had  furnished 
the  excuse  for  the  con- 
flict, suffered  less  than 
anyof  the  participants. 
Though  promptly  in- 
vaded by  the  Austrians 
her  army  was  adequate 
for  the  protection  of 
her  territory,  and  when 
the  growling  of  the 
Russian  bear  in  the 
Passes  of  the  Carpathi- 
ans forced  the  Aus- 
trians to  protect  them- 
selves in  that  quarter, 
the  Serbs  in  their  turn 
took  the  offensive  and 
inflicted  ac rushing 


General    Sa 


commander 
Balkans 


of 


Allies 


rhe 


defeat  upon  the  Aus- 
trians in  the  Servian 
mountains.  That  vie- 
to  r  \"  d  e  m  o  n  s  t  r  a  t  e  d 
that  Austria  was  in- 
capable of  dealing  with 
both  Russia  and  Servia 
at  once,  and  put  an  end 
to  further  in\asion  of 
the  latter's  territor}' 
for  some  months. 

Early  in  the  fall  of 
191 5,  however,  it  be- 
came apparent  to  the 
diplomats  at  Berlin 
and  Vienna  that  if 
they  were  to  hold  Bul- 
garia even  neutral  they 
must  prove  their  ability 
topayherprice.  After 
the  second  Balkan  war 
Bulgaria  had  been 
despoiled  of  territory 
which  could  be  re- 
stored only  by  robbing 
Servia.  But  Servia 
was    still    unsubdued. 


Comparative  lengths  of  rifles  and  bayonets  used  in  the  Great  War.     The  kind  of  rifle  used  is  indicated  under  the  name  ot  each 

country 


■|"  HE    NATIONS    A  T    W  A  R 


237 


A  Serbian  ^im  sik-nucd.       1  iic  .NcrbKin  rL\sisrance  was  gailanr  and   stubborn,  but  tlu-y  wcru  ill   t([uip|H-tl   untl  ilcniuralizni  by 

pestilence  as  well  as  by  superior  numbers  and  equipment 


Clearl\'  it  Bulgaria  was  to  be  inHuenced 
this  state  had  to  be  crushed.  Moreover, 
Germany  wanted  a  direct  line  to  Con- 
stantinople. The  Allies  were  menacing  Gal- 
lipoii,  and  for  its  defence  guns  and  munitions 
must  be  shipped  south  from  Essen.  The 
campaign  in  Mesopotamia  and  the  attack 
on  the  Suez  Canal  compelled  the  establish- 
ment of  a  line  ot  transportation  which  could 
not  be  maintained  with  the  Servian  army  in 
being. 

It  was  therefore  determined  at  Berlin  to 
withdraw  troops  from  whatever  points  could 
spare  them   and   drive  through   Servia   with 


the  end  in  \ievs  of  opening  tiie  road  to  Con- 
stantinople. By  doing  this  a  rich  agricul- 
tural country  would  be  opened  for  the  supply 
of  German\',  already  feeling  the  pinch  of  the 
British  food  blockade.  Arms,  munitions,  and 
reenforcements  could  be  sent  to  the  Turks 
at  Gallipoli  and  in  Asia  Minor.  Egypt, 
Persia,  and  India  might  be  attacked.  Bul- 
garia, Macedonia,  Albania,  and  1  ui  key  would 
be  brought  into  immediate  militarx  touch 
with  Germany,  and  even  Roumania  might 
be  won  to  the  Teutonic  side. 

Accordingly  General   von    Mackensen  was 
recalled    from    Russia   to   lead    the    unading 


Serbian   women    burying   their   dead.     Every   man,  woman,  and   child   in    Serbia    took    some    part    in    the   heroic  national 

resistance 


238 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Alllfd  camp  at  Salonika  as  seen  from  an  aeroplane.     This  camp  is  in  the  rear  of  the  outposts  that  guard  the  territory  held 
by  the  Allies  around  Salonika.     The  hills  in  the  distance  are  heavily  fortified 


Teuton  armies.  Early  in  October  he  entered 
Servian  territory  with  a  force  for  which  the 
defenders  were  no  match.  Because  of  the 
nature  of  the  country  reliance  was  placed 
largely  upon  artillery  and  the  wretched  Serbs 
were  literally  blown  out  of  their  land.  While 
the  Teutons  were  advancing  from  the  north, 
the  Bulgars,  now  at  the  end  of  their  hesita- 
tion, also  declared  war  and  pushed  in  from 
the  east.  The  Serbians  caught  between 
two  enemies, 
and  outnum- 
bered at  every 
point,  had 
nothing  for  it 
but  steady 
retreat.  Bel- 
grade, their 
capital,  fell  to 
the  Teuton 
arms.  Nish, 
their  earlier 
capital,  was 
taken  by  the 
Bulgars.  Lit- 
tle Monte- 
negro, with 
its  army  of 
30,000  men, 
was  drawn  in- 
to the  conflict 
on  the  Servian 
side,  but 
was  quickly 
snuffed  out 


Roumanians  more  Latin  than  Balkan.  They  claim  that  Rnimiania  is  a  Latin 
community  left'  along  the  Black  Sea  and  the  Danube,  and  that  its  people  are 
descendants  of  Roman  legionaries.  Their  language  is  essentially  Latin.  Physi- 
cally they  resemble  one  type  of  Italians 


like  a  candle  by  the  blast  of  Von  Mack- 
ensen's  guns.  By  December  ist,  prac- 
tically all  of  Servia  had  been  subdued  and 
her  army  driven  to  the  seashore,  through 
Albania,  where  it  rested  in  hope  of  aid  from 
the  Allies. 

That  hope  was  not  wholly  disappointed, 
although  the  action  of  the  Allies  in  viewing 
from  afar  the  martyrdom  of  Servia  without 
the  extension  of  a  helping  hand  was  one  of 

the  tragedies 
of  the  war — 
and  a  blunder 
aswell.  When 
the  determi- 
nation of  Ger- 
many to  crush 
Servia  and  to 
b  ri  n  g  B  u  1- 
garia  into  the 
war  as  an  ac- 
tive belliger- 
ent became 
known  the 
question  of 
sending  an  ex- 
pedition to 
their  imper- 
illed ally's  aid 
was  discussed 
in  the  military 
councils  of 
England  and 
France.  The 
former  calmly 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


239 


frowned  upon  it.  The  diplomatic  problems 
involved  were  perplexing.  Italy,  which  had 
now  declared  war  upon  Austria,  was  not  eager 
to  have  Servian  power  built  up,  lest  that 
country  annex  Albania  upon  which  the 
Italians  themselves  had  designs.  Moreover, 
an  allied  expedition  to  Servia's  aid  could 
only  advance  through  Greek  territory  from 
Salonika,    which    the  Allies  already   held   in 


finally  won.  Early  in  October  the  Gulf  of 
Salonika  became  crowded  with  transports 
and  merchantmen,  flying  the  flags  of  all 
nations  but  all  engaged  in  transporting 
troops  and  munitions  for  Servian  relief. 
Ihe  long,  stone  quays  of  the  Greek  port 
resounded  to  the  tread  of  French  and  English 
infantry,  landed  in  flat  defiance  of  neutrality 
but  apparently  with   the  warm  approval  of 


French  transports  and  cavalry  horses  after  disembarkation.      This  shows  a  small  corner  of  the  great  cantonment  of  French 

horses  that  were  poured  out  of  the  transports  at  Salonika 

flat  defiance  of  the  neutral  rights  of  Greece,      the  Greek  people  if  not  that  of  their  king. 

The  statesmen  of  Great  Britain  who  had  gone     "  ^      1        -.        ,      . 

to  war  because  of  Germany's  violation  of  the 

neutrality  of  Belgium  felt  naturally  nervous 

about  their  own   continued  violation  of  the 

neutrality  of  Greece.     However,  they  deferred 


Up  a  Greek  railroad,  about  sixty  miles,  the 
troops  were  rushed  into  Macedonia  and  to 
Monasrir  where  they  efl^ected  a  junction 
with  the  remnant  of  the  Servian  armv.  In 
all  200,000  or  more  Allied  troops  were  thus 


to  these  scruples  only  long  enough  to  make     sent  to  the  southern  end  of  Servia.     Th 
their  expedition  for  the  relief  of  the  Serbs  too 
late  to  be  ot  service. 

It  was  at  the  insistence  of  Premier  Briand 
oi  France  and  of  General  Joff"re,  who  crossed 
the  Channel  to  plead  his  case,  that  British 
consent   to   a   Ser\ian    relief  expedition    was 


ev 


attempted  no  reconquest  of  the  territory 
taken  by  the  Teutons,  but  at  the  end  of  the 
war's  second  year  were  merely  holding  their 
ground — doubtless  in  part  as  an  object-lesson 
to  Greece  and  Roumania  still  hesitating  as 
to  the  flag  under  which   they  would  enlist. 


240 


THE     NATIONS     AT    WAR 


I 


Con(]iieriny  rlu-  Alps.     The  ascent  ut  rht-  Dolomites 


l1,Mt..  t'N    l-.r   .^^n   IJrOb. 


T  HE     N  A  'I"  I  ()  N  S     A  1'     W  A  R 


241 


Serbian    \'^iliinrt-cT^ 
hey  were  mostly  old 


wh. 
men. 


ti.nl    nil    ntks 
and   were   em- 


I'loyed  in  trench  digging.     They   w'ent  with 

the  army  when  it  evacuated  Monastir,  and  being  totall 

soldiers.     Many  died  by  the  way 


How  valuable  was  that  object-lesson  was 
demonstrated  in  August,  1916,  when  Rou- 
mania  came  over  to  the  Allies,  and  Kmg 
Constantine,  his  power  destroyed,  was  forced 
to  yield  to  the  war  sentiment  of  his  people. 
At  one  time  there  had  been  serious  criti- 
cism of  the  tactics  of  the  Allies  in  entering 
upon  the  difficult  field  of  Balkan  diplomacy 
and  war  at  all.  It  was  urged,  with  some 
reason,  that  the  British  might  better  pour  all 
their  troops,  as  fast  as  a\'ailable,  into  the 
battlefields  of  France  and  Belgium  where  it 
seemed  that  the  final  issue  of  the  war  would 
be  determined.  Mainly  in  order  to  guard 
India  the  British  Government  repelled  this 
suggestion,  fortunately  for  the  Allies.  In- 
deed it  would  have  been  more  fortunate  had 
there  been  no  such  hesi- 
tation as  was  shown 
in  the  expedition  to  the 
Dardanelles  and  the 
abortive  effort  to  aid 
the  Serbs  before  they 
were  annihilated.  For 
a  more  decisive  front 
shown  in  that  section  in 
191 5  would  have  kept 
Bulgaria  neutral,  or  per- 
haps brought  her  to 
the  Allies'  side  as 
Roumania  came  a  vear 


later.  S  e  r  v  i  a 
would  have  been 
saved  and  these 
three  Balkan 
States,  acting  in 
unison,  would 
have  blocked 
the  German 
march  to  Con- 
stantinople, and 
have  kept  Aus- 
tria so  busy  with 
her  own  defence 
in  the  south  that 
the  Russians 
would  infallibl\ 
l'ia\e  marchetl 
withouteffecti\e 
opposition 
through  her 
northern  prov- 
inces into  Ger- 
m  any.  As  it 
was  the  belated 
activity  of  the 
Allies  due  to  Premier  Briand  and  General  Joffre 
was  the  sole  cause  of  Rouniania's  accession  to 
the  Allied  cause,  which  at  the  time  changed 
the  whole  prospect  of  the  war  in  the  Balkan 
regions.  Napoleon  said  that  God  was  al- 
ways with  the  heaviest  battalions.  How- 
ever that  may  be,  hesitating  neutrals  close  to 
the  battle  zone  are  always  with  the  side  that 
seems  to  be  winning. 

Comparatively  little  is  \et  known  of  tlu- 
conditions   of  warfare    in    the    Ser\ian    cam- 
paigns.    The  regions  were  unfamiliar  to  the 
average  citizen  of  other  lands.     The  popula- 
tion was  sparse,  with  little  associa- 
^-^^         tion  with  the  outer  world,  destitute  in 
the    main    of  newspapers  or   means 
of  making  their  sufferings    known. 


iinei|uipped,  suffered  more  than  the  regular 


ian  siege  irun  used  to  batter  down  Austrian  concrete  trenches 


242 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


243 


They  say  the  Austrians  left  the  seeds 
of  typhus  in  Servia — not  with  mahgnant 
purpose,  of  course,  but  as  a  result  of 
insanitary  camp  and  hospital 
management.  It  is  a  fact  that 
when  tile  Serbians  first  retired 
from  Valjevo  they  left  it  free  of 
disease.  When  the  fortune  of 
war  turned  their  way,  as  it 
did  after  the  first  Austrian 
invasion,  they  returned  to  find 
\  aljevo  harboring  3,000  Aus- 
trian wounded,  many  suffering 
from  typhus.  An  account  in 
the  London  Times  says: 

"In    one    building,    quite    a 

new    school,   150  dead   Austrians    were 

found  in  the  cellars,  and  men  and  cattle 

A    .      r  I  ,-  i    ,  11.-  were    buried     indiscriminately     in     the 

A  cheerful  luginvc.     At  li-asi   70  vears  old,  this  man  was  em-  j  i  •  r        1 

ployed  in  the  transport  service.     His  job  was  to  lead  two  donkeys       .COUrtyards      adjacent,     many     of      them 
laden  with  shells  fur  field  guns 


T  he  war  correspondents  of    English-speaking 
lands    had    their    attention    riveted    on    the 
struggle  in  France,  or  at  the  most  took  a  few 
days    from    observation    of    the  wrestle   for 
Galicia  between  Brussilov  and  Von  Hin- 
denburg  to  run   down   into  Servia  and 
observe  what  they  thought  was  a  mere 
side  action  of  the  war  but  which  was  in 
fact  the  murder  of  a  nation.    Moreover, 
the  censorship  was  applied  in  Servia  with 
more  rigidity  and  less  intelligence  than 
in   any   other   battle   area — though   the 
follies  and  futilities  of  the  censors  were 
notorious  everywhere. 

V  rom  the  information  which  filtered 
out   from  this  cauldron  of  plague  and 
battle  it  became  in  time  known  to  the    ' 
world  that  in  no  other  section   had  the 
horrors  of  war    been    so   frightful;   no- 
where  else   the    proportion    of    wanton 
sacrifice    to    cruelty,    carelessness,    and 
ignorance  so  great.     The  fighting  was 
fierce,    but    so    had    it    been    on    other 
fronts.     The  attendant  barbarities,  the 
destruction  of  the  homes,  the  devastation 
of  fields,  the  exile  of  peaceful  folks  to 
meet    starvation    and  death  were   shocking, 
but    so   had   they    been    in    Belgium    and  in 
Poland.     But   Servia   suffered  a  martyrdom 
all    her   own    in    the   scourge  of  the  plague 
that   swept  over  the  land    after  the   armies 
of  the  Teutons  an  1    Bulgars  had  flooded  it 
with  blood. 


barely  covered  by  a  foot  of  earth.     From 
Valjevo   the  infection  spread   like  fire, 


^SC^ 


■w 


The  monument  marks  where  4,000  Serbs  fell  in  the  battle 
for  Monastir  in  the  first  Balkan  war  in  1912.  The  fighting 
;n  November,  191;,  passed  over  the  same  ground 


244 


THE     NAIIONS    AT     WAR 


View  uf  Monasrir  fnmi  a  minaret.     It  is  a  picturesque  old  city,  the  architecture  being  a  strange  mixture,  with  the  Turkish  inHu- 
ence  predominatins-     The  tall,  white  towers  are  minarets  of  mosques 


being  carried  by  soldiers  returning  to  then 
homes  and  by  travelers  on  the  railway.  In  a 
few  weeks  the  country  had  become  a  seeth- 
ing mass  of  misery  and  pestdence. 

"The  conditions  were  appallmg.  The 
number  of  patients  was  beyond  all  hospital 
accommodation,  and  doctors  and  nurses  were 
dying  with  their  patients.  In  the  Nish  Hos- 
pital the  patients  were  lying  three  and  four  in 
one  bed,  with  one  covering  for  the  whole,  while 
others  lay  on  the  floor,  and  even  underthebeds. 
At  one  time  there  were  700  patients  to  200 
beds,  with  only  two  doctors,  one  of  them  a 
young  Swiss,  who  very  shortly  after  fell  ill. 
There  were  no  sanitary  arrangements. 

"And  all  the  time  the  infection  was 
being  carried  about  by  soldiers  returning 
from  the  army,  by  peasants  wandering 
at  large,  and,  above 

all,  by  the  travelers 

on  the  railways. 
The  trains  were 
crowded  with  all 
sorts  of  people — 
peasants  in  filthy 
clothes,  rags,  and 
goatskins,  wander- 
ing aimlessly  along 
corridors,  looking  in 
vain  for  accom- 
modation, and 
all  thecarriages  reek- 
ing of  naphthalene." 


A  veteran  of  two  wars  in  Salonika  harbor 


In  time  it  may  be  known,  approximately, 
it  can  never  be  known  certainly,  whether 
weapons  of  war  or  disease  claimed  the  more 
victims  in  Servia.  In  July,  191 5,  it  was  esti- 
mated that  more  than  100,000  had  perished 
of  typhus  and  cholera.  In  this  moment  of 
dreadful  agony  the  people  of  the  United  States 
responded  nobly  not  only  with  offerings,  but 
with  personal  service  to  the  call  of  distress. 
The  activities  of  the  Red  Cross  were  mar- 
velous. Young  men  and  women,  not  doctors 
or  students  of  medicine  alone,  but  youth  of 
all  professions  who  wished  to  help  volun- 
teered for  Servian  service.  This  extract 
from  a  letter  of  a  clergyman  gives  some  idea 
of  what  they  had  to  face: 

"They     found   1,400  desperately  sick  and 
"wounded       men 

- — Serbian      soldiers 

and  Austrian 
prisoners.  These 
had  been  carried  to 
two  dirty  tobacco 
warehouses;  150  of 
them  were  lying  on 
mattresses  (two  and 
three  to  a  mattress). 
The  rest  were  on 
the  reeking  floor — 
1,400  men  in  stoic 
silence,  suffering 
from     gun-shot 


I"  HE     NATIONS     AT     WAR 


245 


Serbian  volunteers  at  roll  call.     1  hese  were  some  of  the  many  for  whom  no  weapons  could  be  provided,  but  they  were  organized 
to  carry  supplies.     Often  they  picked  up  guns  of  dead  comrades  and  joined  the  lighting 


wounds,  shrapnel,  and  burstinji  shell.  Man\' 
were  without  portions  of  their  bodies;  all 
wounds  were  infected,  not  having  been 
dressed  since  the  first  rough  aid  on  thebattle- 
field  da\s  since. 

"But  this  was  not  the  worst.  Lying  in 
filth,  unattended  and  half-starved,  germs  of 
the  most  deadlv  epidemics  were  appearing — 
smallpox,  diphtheria,  relapsing  fe\er,  ty- 
phoid, and  typhus.  Wounded  soldiers  from 
the  battleline  and  sick  soldiers  from  the  bar- 
racks were  tottering  into  the  tobacco  ware- 
houses, fiftv,  one  hundred,  and  as  high  as 
two  hundred  and  fiftv  a  day. 

"The  conditions  of  that  pest-camp  cannot 
be  told,  but  this  can — that  not  one  of  those 
rweKe  women  and  si.\  men  faltered  or  turned 
back.  With  a  laugh  that  was  nearer  a  sob, 
they  rolled  up  their 
sleeves  and  bent  to 
their  task,  making  a 
liospital  out  of 
nothing,  classifying 
the  unclassable,  saw- 
ing up  boxes  for 
splints,  stoking  old 
rusty  boilers  to  se- 
cure hot  water,  per- 
forming miracles  in 
the  way  of  opera- 
tions and  cures. 

"They    were    en- 
gulfed ;     the\      were 


An  Italian  battleship  in  Saloniki  harbor 


overwhelmed.  Every  nurse  became  a  'lady 
of  the  lamp.'  They  were  cooks,  sisters,  min- 
istering angels,  priests,  undertakers.  Mo- 
hammedans, unused  to  honest\"  or  s\mpath\ 
in  women,  reached  out  feeble  hands  to  touch 
their  garments.  Soldiers  cut  off  their  prized 
buttons  and  officers  their  stars  and  chevrons 
that  the\'  might  press  them  into  the  hand  that 
cooled  their  brow  or  dressed  the  grievous 
wound." 

Human  courage,  gentleness,  and  sympathy 
were  never  put  to  a  more  severe  test  than 
in  the  typhus  hospitals  of  Servia,  nor  was  there 
ever  a  more  noble  response.  In  this  response 
the  United  States,  too  often  condemned  in 
Europe  as  a  land  of  gross  materialism,  took 
a  leading  part. 

Italy    entered    the    war    by    a    declaration 

against  Austria — 
not  Germany,  on  the 
23d  of  May,  191 5. 
Nothing  in  the 
campaigns  her 
armies  fought  was 
more  dramatic  than 
the  fight  made  in 
her  parliament  and 
her  public  places  to 
drag  her  into  the 
struggle.  Super- 
ficially it  appeared 
that  she  was  mor- 
al 1\    hound  to  co- 


^J^rc> 


246 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


I'lioto  \<y  Brown  Bros. 


Conquering  the  Alps.     Mass  for  the  Itahan  troops  above  the  sea 


THE    NATIONS 


operate  with  the  Teutons.  For  Italv  had 
lonj;  heen  a  member  of  the  Triple  Alhance, 
which  bound  her  to  Germany  and  Austria. 
But  that  Alhance  was  essentially  defensive. 
It  provided  that  all  should  rally  to  the  de- 
fence of  any  one  member  that  might  be 
attacked  from  without.  It  was  the  claim 
of  those    Italians   who   sought    to   force  the 


AT    WAR 

Austria     against 


247 


war  upon  a 


lesi- 


rant  Parliament 
and  an  imwdlmg 
king,  tliat  Aus- 
tria's ultimatum 
to  Servia  was  in 
effect  an  aggres- 
sion, an  incite- 
ment to  war  which 
no  one  member 
of  the  Alliance 
ii a d  a  right  to 
offer  without  con- 
sultation with  the 
others.  Ihe  plea 
of  the  war  party 
in  Italy  was  that 
Austria  was  not 
attacked  but  was 
the  assailant,  and 
that  as  a  party  to 
a  purely  defensive 
agreement  Italy 
was  not  morally 
obligated  to  come 
to  her  aid. 

A  second  cause 
of  complaint  was 
that  Article  VIII 
of  the  Triple 
Alliance  bound 
Austria  to  refrain 
from  any  occupa- 
tion  of  Balkan 
territory  without 
agreement  with  Italy 
her  of  compensation, 
vaded  Servia  without  agreement  with  or  even 
notice  to  Italy,  and  though  demand  for 
compensation  was  instanth'  made  the  nature 
and  intent  of  the  payment  were  debated  so 
long  by  the  Austrians  that  the  Italians  con- 
cluded it  would  never  be  paid.  I'inally 
rhe  Italian  advocates  of  war  contended 
that  Austrian  preparations  for  war  upon 
Russia  were  in  fact  a  provocation  to  the 
latter  nation  to  declare  war,  and  that 
Italy  could  not  be  bound  by  her  agreement 


OKI   111.  11  JllJ   lu.x,,   .,1,1,.    I. 

and  the    payment  to 
Austria,  however,  in- 


to   aid     Austria     against     a     Russian     at- 
tack. 

These  were  the  technical  arguments  em- 
ployed to  force  Italy  into  battle.  They  were 
the  pleas  which  Italian  statesmen  put  for- 
ward in  defence  of  their  action  against  the 
criticism  of  the  world.  They  were  bitterly 
denounced  by  the  Teutonic  Allies  as  being 

made  in  bad  faith, 
j  and  indeed  they 
were  rather  the 
]  excuses  for,  than 
the  true  incen- 
tives to,  the  action 
!  finally  taken  by 
'  theltaliannation. 
For  Italy,  like 
France,  had  her 
lost  p  ro  vinces. 
Her  Alsace-Lor- 
raine are  Trent 
and  Triest,  the 
one  1\  ing  in  the 
Dolomite  Alps  a 
scant  forty  miles 
north  of  the 
Aust  ro-I  talia  n 
boundary,  the  lat- 
ter a  noble  port 
at  the  head  of  the 
Ad  riatic,  which 
has  had  much  to 
do  with  the  de- 
cadence of  the 
maritime  glories 
of  Venice,  which 
it  faces  across  that 
sun-lit  sea.  For 
the  recovery  of 
these  lost  prov- 
inces the  Italian 
-i.ii.iMilh  -i  il.i.ui  .mm  heart  has  yearned 

for  half  a  century, 
and  the  instant  action  of  the  army  when  war 
was  declared  was  to  plunge  into  the  craggy 
ranges  of  the  Dolomites  in  the  effort  to  re- 
claim "Italia  Irredenta,"  as  that  region  is 
called  in  Italy.  Moreover,  modern  Italy  has 
a  legacy  of  hate  against  theAustrianswhich  no 
formal  Alliance  could  ever  obliterate.  I'ntil 
1868  the  military  thrall  of  Austria  was  upon 
the  northern  provinces  of  Italy,  and  .Milan 
and  Venice  for  years  lived  in  sullen  resentment 
as  cities  held  by  the  enemy.  The  Italian  is 
an  emotional  being,  and  though  the  Parlia- 
ment under  the  control  of  Giolotti,  a  strongly 


^wV' 


24S 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


pm-Geiman  statesman,  held  out  for  ten  long 
months  against  war  on  the  Allies'  side,  an 
army  of  orators  and  pamphleteers  stirred  up 
the  people  to  the  highest  pitch  of  excite- 
ment, and  the  demonstrations  in  favor  of  such 
action  amounted  almost  to  revolution.  Gabri- 
elle  d'Annunzio,  poet  and  playwright,  was  a 
leader  in  this  agitation,  traveling  from  town 
to  town,  haranguing  the  people  from  the 
steps  of  the  Roman  capitol,  and  m  the  grand 
plaza  of  St.  Peter's,  turning  out  pamphlets 
as  plenteous  as 
the  doves  of  St. 
Mark'  s,  a  p- 
peahng  to  all 
that  was  emo- 
tional in  the 
Italian  nature 
until  he  had 
aroused  the 
populace  from 
Messina  to 
Venice  to  a 
point  that 
hardly  brooked 
control.  Aftei' 
a  dissolution  of 
the  ministry 
there  followed 
a  campaign 
which  racketl 
the  Italian 
peninsula  trnm 


end  to  end.  Every  pos- 
sible dramatic  incident 
was  seized  upon  as  a 
rallying  point  for  the  war 
party.  In  Januarv  the 
body  of  Bruno  Garibaldi, 
the  grandson  of  Italy's 
famous  liberator,  was 
brought  back  from 
France  where  he  had 
been  slain,  fighting 
bravely  with  the  Allies. 
All  Italy  went  wild  with 
adoration  for  the  hero, 
and  applause  for  the 
cause  in  which  he  had 
fallen.  His  state  funeral 
in  Rome  was  a  cortege 
which  would  have  done 
honor  to  a  king,  and  the 
whole  city  lined  the  nar- 
row and  historic  ways 
through  which  it  passed. 
It  was  the  cause  equally  with  the  heroic  and 
historic  name  to  which  this  tribute  of  a  whole 
nation  was  paid.  From  that  day  there  was 
no  doubt  as  to  the  side  on  which  Italy  would 
land. 

It  has  been  asserted  that  in  her  final  action 
Italy  was  animated  by  a  lust  for  spoils,  by 
the  desire  to  regain  Trent  and  Triest,  by 
covetousness  for  Albania,  and  an  intent  to 
make  the  Adriatic  an  Italian  lake,  by  an 
ambition  to  have  a  larger  slice  of  the  Balkan 


.irtilk-i\'  coveriim 


Srrlii:!!!  wonii-n.  ilri\(.n  tVum  tluii  himu'.  In   rlu-   Kiiton  invnsinn 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


HO 


pie,  and  a  bit  of  riie 
Hnal  slicing  of  riirkey. 
I'robably  that  is  true. 
Nations  are  not  unsel- 
fish, and  statesmen  are 
in  duty  bound  to  aid 
in  the  aggrandi/.ement 
of  their  states.  But 
Italy  was  not  wholly 
animated  by  mercenary 
motives,  for  she  took  up 
the  cause  of  the  Allies 
when  in  her  neighbor- 
hood at  least  it  was 
darkest.  The  Russians 
were  in  full  retreat  from 
Galicia  when  she  flung 
down  her  gauntlet  to 
Austria.  It  was  the 
people  of  Italy,  the 
emotions  of  Italy, 
rather  than  any  sordid 
considerations  that 
rushed  her  into  battle 
diplomacy  or  the  machinations  of  a  cabinet 
have  less  to  do  with  calling  a  nation  to  arms. 

To  the  non-military  mind  it  seemed  that 
the  entry  of  Italy  upon  the  war  ought  to 
have  an  immediate  and  decisive  effect  upon 
the  conflict.  The  belligerents  had  been  ex- 
pending their  strength  for  ten  months  in 
what  seemed  at  the  time  to  be  too  fierce  a 
conflict  to  be  long  continued.  Italy  now 
came  to  the  aid  of  the  Allies  with  an  organized 


French  artillery  hurried  across  the  V'ardar  River  to  aid  the  Serbs,  hut  too  Ian-  to  avert 
the  catastrophe  which  overwhelmed  Serbia.  The  tardiness  ot  the  H  rench  and  Knglish  in 
coming  to  Serbia's  assistance  resulted  in  the  complete  desolation  of  the  brave  little  country 
which  was  overrun  b\'  the   Teutonic  armies 


N 


ever 


had 


secret 


Serbian  camp  scene  at  reveille 


army  of  800,000  men,  and  a  male  population 
of  military  age  of  about  3,500,000.  During 
the  ten  months  of  hesitation  every  effort  had 
been  made  to  bring  the  mobilized  troops  to  a 
high  degree  of  efliciency,  but,  save  for  the 
war  in  Tripoli  against  a  weak  and  disorgan- 
ized enemy,  they  were  without  active  experi- 
ence in  the  field.  The  Italian  navy  ranked  as 
superior  to  the  Austrian  navy  with  which  it 
might  be  expected  to  come  at  once  into  con- 
flict.     Hut     its    superiority     was    largely     in 

capital  ships, 
aad  the  Adri- 
atic, in  which 
any  naval  hat- 
tie  would  be 
fought,  was,  be- 
cause of  itsnar- 
rowness.  pecu- 
liarK  ta\()rable 
to  submarines 
in  which  Aus- 
tria was  not  so 
greatl\  out- 
classed. 

Ihe  rugged 
line  of  Alps, 
w  h  ic  h  f  o  r  m 
ltal\'s  north- 
ern border,  con- 
stitute a  pro- 
tection for  Aus- 
tria, a  menace 


250  THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 

to    the    more    southerly    nation.       For    the  has    given    the    territory    the    name    Italia 
boundary    line  gives   the    crests   to  Austria.  Irredenta  or  Italy  Unredeemed. 
Her  troops  bent  on  an  invasion  would  fight  Italy    struck    first,    along    a    five-hundred- 
downward    to   the   gentle  declivities   of    the  mile  front.     Her  armies  quicklv  spread  over 
Italian    foothills.       If  the    Italians   on    their  the  Trentino   and,  on   the  west,  crossed  the 


.Lake  y 

MrT'  GERMANY        >»^         'v^ 

«         <       I         •\         c  *.    ' 


H   Italian 
Q]  Austrian 

SCALE  OF  MILES 


-■INNSBRUCK 


0       10 


30  50 


AUSTRIA 


HUNGARY 


BOZEN  O 


obergamo 


Lake 
BRESCIA  O  Gard^ 


PARMA 


BOLOGNE  O 


In  the  Alps  the  Italian  army  has  had  to  face  the  most  formidable  natutal  obstacle  in  Europe 


part  sought  to  Invade  Austria,  their  columns 
would  have  to  make  their  way  through  nar- 
row passes  and  tortuous  defiles  and  up  pre- 
cipitous heights  to  the  summit.  With  all 
physical  conditions  against  her,  however, 
the  Italians  had  the  advantage  of  conducting 
their  invasion  in  a  land  the  greater  part 
of  whose  inhabitants  were  enthusiastically 
friendly.  For  the  territory  about  Trent  and 
I  rieste  is  largely  peopled  by  Italians,  whose 
restive  state  under  the  Austrian  domination 


Lsonzo  River,  and  reached  Montfalcone 
within  four  days  of  the  declaration  of  war. 
It  seemed  for  the  time  as  though  there  were 
to  be  no  effective  resistance  by  the  Austrians, 
who  had  indeed  been  forced  by  a  Russian 
menace  to  send  to  their  eastern  front  an 
army  of  700,000  men  who  had  seen  service — 
men  of  from  thirty-five  to  forty  years  who 
had  recently  had  special  training  from  Ger- 
man officers.  With  these  troops  withdrawn 
the  opposition   to   the   Italian   advance  was 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


necessarily  entrusted 
ro  troops  made  up  of 
b()\s  below  nmeteen 
and  men  above  forty- 
five  hastily  drawn 
from  the  threatened 
territory'  which  was 
thoroughly  per- 
meated with  pro- 
Iralian  sentiment.  As 
a  result  the  Italian 
advance  for  the  first 
two  months  encount- 
ered practically  no 
effective  resistance 

The  Italian  stra- 
tegy put  briefly  was: 

1.  To  neutralize 
the  friendly  Trentino 
by  capturing  or 
"covering"  her  de- 
fences, and  cut- 
ting her  line  of  com- 
munication  with 
Austria  proper. 

2.  To  cover,  or 
capture,  Trieste  and 
then  move  in  force  in 
tiie   direction  of  the 

Austrian  fortress  of  Klagenfurt  and  Vienna. 
The  distance  of  the  Austrian  capital  from  the 
base  of  Italian  operations  a  week  after  the 
war  began  was  little 
more  than  that  from 
New  York  to  Provi- 
dence. 

It  seemed  at  first 
that  all  this  was  to 
be  yielded  to  Italy  by 
default.  By  the  end 
of  July  her  com- 
manders were  satis- 
fied with  conditions 
in  the  Trentino,  and 
her  troops  were  at- 
tacking along  the 
Isonzo  from  Tarvis  to 
the  Adriatic — a  front 
of  not  less  than 
seventy-five  miles. 
The  river  itself  was 
a  great  natural  de- 
fence for  the  Aus- 
trian s.  Flowing 
through  narrow 
gorges,    bordered    by 


Stars  and  biii[H 


Steep  cliffs  broken 
only  by  narrow 
mountain  passes,  it 
had  been  strength- 
ened by  powerful  fort- 
resses erected  by  the 
Austrians  in  far- 
sighted  anticipation 
of  trouble  with  their 
Italian  neighbors. 
Yet  to  the  amaze- 
ment of  military 
observers  the  Italians 
accomplished  the 
crossing  of  the  river 
in  four  separate 
places.  Agile  as  the 
mountain  chamois, 
vested  with  all  the 
reckless  daring  of  the 
Latin  peoples,  they 
proved  to  be  precisely 
the  troops  needed  for 
so  desperate  an  enter- 
prise. 

Gorizia  was  the  im- 
mediate objective  and 
early  in  August,  19 15, 
the  Italian  staff   an- 
nounced  positively  that    its   capture   was   a 
matter  of  but  a  few  days.     Never  were  mili- 
tary   commanders    more    deceived.     Gorizia 

fell  indeed  to  the  Ita- 
lian arms,  but  it  fell 
in  August,  1916,  just 
a  year  later.  The 
twelve  months  be- 
tween witnessed  some 
of  the  hardest  and 
most  inconclusive 
fighting  that  had 
taken  place  in  any 
battle  area  of  the 
Great  War. 

Into  all  the  details 
of  that  year  of  strug- 
gle and  of  carnage  it 
is  impossible  in  this 
brief  narrative  to  go. 
Enough  to  say  that 
b \  the  middle  of 
December,  iQISj 
Italy  had  so  estab- 
lished  herself  within 

in  .V,l..niL...     The  American  consulate,  the       Austrian      borders 

busiest  place  in  the  city  3s  to  make  any  Aus- 


War  waits  j;arlur\d  trum  tin  Mio«y  trulls.  Children 
whose  parents  were  killed  or  lost  during  the  evacuation  of 
Servia  before  the  advancing  German  and  Bulgarian  armies. 
The  one  at  the  lett  of  the  photograph  had  struggled  along  the 
Albanian  trail  for  25  days,  without  parents  or  friends,  and 
survived  hardships  that  overcame  many  adults.  The  story 
of  the  Albanian  trail  has  not  been  written,  but  if  it  ever  is  it 
will  surpass  in  horror  any  of  the  tragedies  of  Belgium  or 
Poland 


c 


o 


^0" 


.v^ 


:\CHMFAM    l\    \N    Al.t'lM-.  k  W  INK 


^iu 


..- Sl- 


I'hoto  by  Brown  Bros. 


2.S4 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


KEY 

■  International  BoundarFes 
:3  Old  Serbian  Boundary 
-  Railroads 
=  Highways 

SCALE  OF  MILES. 


The  railroads,  rivers,  and  wagon  roads  of  Servia. 
practicable  means  of  traversing  this  mountainous  country,  and  their 
of  the  invasion  of  Servia  by  the  Teutonic  allies  and  the  Bulgars 


These  three  kinds  of  highways  are  the  only 
ation  has  determined  the  strategy 


trian  invasion  of  her  own  territory  appear 
improbable.  The  Austrian  hne  on  the  Isonzo 
she  had  pierced  at  the  centre.  Tolmino, 
Gorizia,  and  Trieste  were  all  menaced  by  her 
troops,  and  the  occupation  of  any  one  of 
them  meant  a  long  step  on  the  way  to  Vienna. 


Gorizia    had 

suftercdhea\ilv 
from  the  fire 
of  General 
Cadorno's  ar- 
t  i  1 1  e  r  y,  but 
though  the 
town  and  its 
torts  were  in 
ruins  the  de- 
fenders still 
maintained 
what  all  con- 
ceded to  be  a 
hopeless  resis- 
tance. But 
those  who  con- 
ceded this  had 
little  c  o  n- 
ception  of  how 
long  the  dogged 
Austrians 
could  hold  out. 
The  fallingof 
winter  in  the 
narrow  and 
precipitous  de- 
files and  tower- 
ing peaks  of 
the  Dolomites 
ended  effective 
operations  in 
that  section. 
Some  fighting, 
indeed,  pro- 
gressed, and 
the  world  heard 
of  sknmishes 
on  skiis  over 
snow  lying 
seven  feet  deep 
on  the  level, 
of  artillery 
mounted  on 
sledges,  and  of 
hot  battles 
fought  among 
the  avalanches. 
But  in  the  main 
the     winter 


passed  without  any  material  change  in  the 
positions  along  the  Italian  frontier.  The  Aus- 
trians were  on  the  defensive,  and  every  natu- 
ral obstacle  that  the  rigors  of  winter  put  in 
the  path  of  the  Italians  was  to  their  advan- 
tage.    Nevertheless  the  world  wondered  at 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


the  slight  showing  made  by  the  Itahans  and 
complaint  was  common  m  the  allied  press  that 
the  soldiers  of  \  ictor  Emmanuel  were  "shirk- 
ing their  hit."  What  had  really  happened 
was  that  while  they  had  crossed  the  frontiers 
at  practically  every  point,  they  had  been  in- 
stantly checked  upon  coming  into  contact  with 
the  Austrian  main  lines  of  defence.  Once  so 
checked  the  Italian  lines  showed  as  little 
change  for  eight  months  as  did  the  French 
lines  in  Flanders. 

In  May,  1916,  the  AuStrians  who  had  thus 


•'as 

portions  that  it  had  maintained  in  the  battle- 
fields of  France.  More  than  2,ocx)  heavy 
guns  were  brought  into  action  by  the  Aus- 
trians,  and  the  weight  of  metal  thrown  is  said 
to  have  been  equalled  only  at  \erdun. 

The  Austrian  drive  continued  for  ten  days. 
It  had  been  planned  with  the  utmost  skill. 
Many  strategic  points  in  the  Trentino  were 
recovered,  and  the  Austrian  columns  pene- 
trated far  into  Italian  territory.  At  this 
time  the  Austrian  War  Office  reported  the 
recovery  of  300  square  miles  of  lost  Austrian 


French  soldiers  constructing  barbed  wire  entanglements  outside  Saloniki 


far  been  content  with  maintaining  a  fairly 
successful  defensive,  suddenly  began  an  at- 
tack which  in  its  turn  threatened  to  over- 
whelm the  Italian  forces  along  the  western 
Alpine  front.  It  is  estimated  that  this 
Austrian  drive  enlisted  more  than  700,000 
men,  of  whom  360,000  were  newly  brought 
from  the  Galician  front.  Both  in  the  Tren- 
tino and  along  the  Isonzo  front  the  Austro- 
Hungarians  pressed  the  attack  with  such 
vigor  that  the  Italians  were  pressed  back 
from  all  the  advanced  positions  they  had  won 
in  the  Austrian  Tyrol,  and  were  hard  put  to 
it  to  maintain  their  lines  before  Gorizia. 
For  the  first  time  in  the  eastern  theatre  of 
war  the  work  of  the  artillery  took  on  the  pro- 


territory,  and  the  occupation  of  300  square 
miles  of  Italian  soil.  The  moment  seemed 
critical  for  Italy,  for  the  Austrian  Tyrol  pene- 
trates so  far  into  her  territory  that  invading 
columns  moving  southeast  from  that  border 
would  not  only  capture  Venice  and  Verona, 
but  would  cut  off  the  Italian  army  operating 
along  the  Isonzo.  Or,  if  the  Austrians  chose 
to  cooperate  with  the  German  drive,  then  in 
progress  in  France,  they  might  move  west- 
ward from  the  Trentino  salient  and  menace 
Milan  and  Turin,  the  latter  a  point  ot  con- 
centration for  an  attack  on  France's  Italian 
frontier.  Should  such  an  attack  be  even 
threatened  France  would  have  to  rush  troops 
to  the  menaced  front,  thereby  weakening  her 


2q6 


THE    NATIONS    AT     WAR 


more  than 
60,000  men 
put      out     oi 


action, 

had 

rallied 

and 

checked 

the 

nnaders 

'    ad- 

\  ances. 

In 

Mav 

and 

Salonika  chaniicd  hands  trom 

defence  at  \  erdun  and  in  Flanders.  The 
situation  was  a  critical  one.  It  found  its 
reflection  m  Italian  politics,  for  furious  at- 
tacks upon  the  conduct  ol  the  war  caused  the 
overthrow  of  the  ministry.  But  in  the  end 
Italian  gallantry  saved  the  day  and  wrested 
new  victories  from  the  very  grip  of  defeat. 
It  is  quite  true  that  the  full  measure  of  the 
new  Italian  successes  w'as  due  to  the  launch- 
ing in  June,  1916,  of  the  great  Russian  drive 
in  Bukowina  and  Galicia  which  compelled 
the  diversion  of  many  of  the  Austrian  troops 
to  that  theatre  of  war.  But  even  before  this 
the  Italians,  though  in  ten  days  they  had 
lost   30,000  prisoners  and   298  cannon,  with 


iirkt\"  to  (irt-ece  in  Iqi2 


xt-n  arc  equal  to  Servia's  muddy  roads 


June  of  1916 
theconditions 
of    the     same 
111  ()  n  t  h  s    i  n 
1915  had  been 
precisely     re- 
versed.     At 
the     earlier 
period  the  Italians  had  carried  all  the  Austrian 
outposts  but  were  checked  in  their  career  when 
they  encountered  the  enemy's  main  line  of  de- 
fence.    So,  too,  the  Austrians  were  checked  now 
that  they  had  encountered  the  main  line  of  the 
Italians.     Then  came  the  Russian  diversion, 
and  sharply  upon  its  heels  the  Italians  in  their 
turn  began  a  dashing  and  successful  counter 
ofi^ensive. 

Climatic  conditions  compelled  the  Italians 
to  force  the  fighting  on  the  Isonzo  line  at 
first  rather  than  in  the  Tyrol.  In  the 
towering  ranges  of  the  Dolomites  the  snow 
lies  heav\-  until  Jul>',  and  after  driving  their 
foe  from  their  own  territory  the  Italian  forces 

in  that  section  rested 
on  their  arms  to  some 
extent,  awaiting  sum- 
mer and  the  disap- 
pearance of  the  snow. 
But  the  drive  on 
Gorizia  was  not  de- 
lated. The  broad  val- 
ley of  the  Isonzo  is  so 
placed  that  the  warm 
winds  of  Italy  and  the 
Adriatic  flow  freely 
up  it  at  all  times,  giv- 
ing Gonzia,  despite 
its  northern  latitude, 
some  fame  as  a  winter 
resort.  It  is  indeed 
almost  Cahfornian  in 
climate.  T  h  e  t  o  w  n 
Itself  lies  in  the  centre 
of  a  ring  of  hills,  all 
held  by  Austrian  bat- 
teries. Although  those 
immediately  in  front  of 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


257 


Rotiniaiiian   cavaliA' 


the  Italian 
armies  were 
reduced  by 
artillery  or 
taken  by 
trench  war- 
fare, it  was 
futile  for  the 
assadants  to 
o  c  c  u  p  y  t  li  e 
town  itself 
while  it  was 
still  CO  ni 
ni  a  n  d  e  d  b  y 
others  on  ad- 
j  a  cent  hills, 
and  upon 
these  the  Italians  now  be<;an  a  patient  and 
persistent  attack.  Three  hills  commanded 
the  city — Mount  Sabatino,  Mount  San 
Michele,  and  the  heights  of  Podgora.  The 
last  were  taken  by  the  Italians  in  Novem- 
ber. The  other  two  succumbed  to  Victor 
Emmanuel's  artillery  and  trench  warfare  the 
last  week  in  July.  The  Italians  had  brought 
to  this  work  a  prodigious  equipment  of  new 
and  powerful  guns — 1,500  were  said  to  have 
been  furnislied  the  army  at  the  beginning 
of  its  new  drive  in  May.  For  two  days  the 
mountainside,  which  had  been  under  heavy 
fire  for  a  month  or  more,  was  subjected  to 
such  an  infernal  rain  of  shell  and  shrapnel 
that  no  living  thing 
could  withstand  it. 

Mount  Sabatino  had 
long  seemed  impreg- 
nable. It  resisted 
stubbornly  the  fire  of 
the  terrible  new  guns, 
and  was  only  taken  by 
the  e.xercise  of  that 
incredible  and  patient 
industry  which  charac- 
terized so  many  of 
the  military  operations 
of  the  war.  The  for- 
mation of  the  land  in 
this  region  is  of  lime- 
stone, and  in  this  the 
Italians  had  for  months 
been  hewing  wide  un- 
derground passage- 
ways, capable  of  per- 
mitting f o  u  r  men 
abreast  to  pass  from 
their    lines    to    within 


I'ition  of  the  Roumanian  ar 


til  ^.iin    I  1,1; 


rivania 


twenty  yardsofthe  Austrian  defences.  Three 
such  tunnels  of  240  to  300  feet  long  were 
ready  for  use  when,  on  August  6th,  the  final 
bombardment  began.  Then,  after  the  great 
guns  had  beaten  the  Austrian  trenches  out 
of  any  semblance  of  form,  and  dri\'en  away 
nearly  all  the  defenders  who  could  escape, 
the  Italians  poured  out  of  the  exits  of  their 
tunnels  and  overwhelmed  the  amazed  Aus- 
trians  who  remained.  Mt.  Sabatino  thus 
passed  into  Italian  hands.  Mt.  San  Michele 
fell  the  same  day.  Twenty  times  or  more 
it  had  been  taken  and  lost,  and  for  seven 
months  more  than  half  of  its  summit  had 
been  held    bv    the    Italians.     Always   domi- 


,    iLl...L.„.,I. 


2S8 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


nated  by  the  Austrian  fire  from  the  higher 
Mt.  Sabatino  it  could  not  be  held  until  the 
latter  peak  had  fallen.  But  now  after  sus- 
taining attack  not  only  from  the  Italian 
guns,  but  from  twenty-four  duigible  balloons, 
each  carrying  four  tons  of  explosive  and 
daringly  operated,  its  defenders  finally  with- 
drew. 


ing  straw  and  gasoline  were  used  at  times  to 
dislodge  the  defenders.  For  three  days  this 
sort  of  fightmg  raged,  then  the  remnant  of  the 
Austrians  fled  across  the  bridge,  blowing  it 
up  as  the  last  company  passed.  There- 
upon the  Italians,  in  the  face  of  a  heavy  fire, 
forded  the  stream  and  put  the  seal  of  comple- 
tion upon  their  victory. 


British  guns  to  help  the  embattled  Serbs.     A  part  of  the  artillery  contingent  that  passed  through  Salonika  to  Servia. 

British  expedition  was  small  and  late  in  arriving 


Immediately  upon  securing  the  heights  the 
Italians  turned  their  attention  to  the  city. 
It  was  heavily  shelled  to  drive  out  the  few 
defenders  remaining.  The  bridge  head  was 
still  held  by  the  Austrians,  and  the  Italians 
entered  upon  a  hand-to-hand  battle  in  the 
strip  of  territory  that  still  separated  them 
from  it.  Here  there  was  subterranean  war- 
fare. The  Austro-Hungarians  had  adapted 
for  purposes  of  defence  hundreds  of  caves 
that  nature  had  formed  in  the  limestone  hills 
and  crags.  These  they  had  enlarged  into 
great  halls,  holding  vast  quantities  of  muni- 
tions and  housing  thousands  of  men.     Burn- 


Two  days  later  the  Duke  of  Aosta  and 
King  Victor  Emmanuel  rode  into  the  con- 
quered city.  The  culmination  of  a  fourteen 
months'  campaign  had  been  reached.  Gori- 
zia  had  fallen.  One  great  step  had  been 
taken  on  the  way  to  Vienna.  The  Italian 
guns  were  within  twelve  miles  of  Trieste 
and  the  Austrian  fleet  had  already  been  or- 
dered to  evacuate  that  port  which  had  been 
its  base  and  seek  a  new  one  farther  down  the 
Adriatic.  A  notable  advance  had  been  made 
in  what  was  now  obviously  the  allied  plan 
of  campaign — namely,  to  pound  Austria  as 
the  weakest  of  the  Teutonic  Allies  and  to 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


259 


reduce  lier  to  impotence  and  perhaps  com- 
plete surrender  even  while  German}'  fought 
gallantly  on. 

In  all  the  history  of  the  world's  diplomacy 
there  has  been  no  more  complicated  or  per- 
plexing record  than  that  of  Greece  during 
the  Great  War.     At  the  end  of  its  second  year 


were  being  used  to  carry  information  of 
value  to  the  Teutons.  Greece  yielded  to  this 
as  to  everything,  though  her  pro-German 
King  Constantine  took  to  his  bed  in  an 
illness  that  may  well  have  been  brought  on 
by  chagrmand  pique.  But  tine  Greek  Govern- 
ment blandly  declared  all  this  to  be  the  part 
of  perfect  neutrality,  though  they  confessed 


Prince  Andreas  at  the  head  of  the  Greek  .Army.     A  view  of  the 

the  head  of  a  powerful 

the  Greek  Government  was  still  nominally 
at  peace  with  all  the  belligerents.  True, 
an  army  of  French,  English,  and  Italian 
troops  numbering  more  than  600,000  was 
encamped  on  Greek  sod  in  and  about  Sa- 
lonika, and  was  using  that  point  as  a  base 
for  operations  against  the  Austnans  and  Bul- 
gars  in  Servia.  Greek  ports,  even  Athens, 
were  open  to  the  vessels  of  the  Allies  bringing 
troops  and  supplies  to  this  land  of  dubious 
neutrality.  Toward  the  end  of  the  second 
year  the  .'Mlies  even  made  a  successful  de- 
mand for  the  right  to  administer  the  Greek 
posts  and  telegraphs  on  the  plea  that  they 


brother  of  the  King  of  Greece  as  he  rode  through  Salonika  at 
army  of  Greek  troops 

that  it  was  a  benevolent  neutrality  to  the 
Allies.  Some  one  with  a  taste  for  research 
in  diplomatic  history  discovered  that  in 
1832,  after  a  war  for  independence  in  which 
she  was  aided  by  Great  Britain  and  France, 
the  nation  of  Greece  was  established  under 
the  protection  of  those  two  nations  and  Russia. 
The  Convention  of  London,  by  which  the 
Kingdom  of  Greece  had  been  erected,  had 
never  been  annulled,  and  was  now  in  force. 
What  more  reasonable  then  than  that  the 
troops  of  the  protecting  nations  should 
be  hurried  to  Greek  territory  to  guard  it 
from    invasion    by    the    Bulgars    and    Aus- 


26o 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


trians   who    were   knocking    at   its   northern 
barriers? 

The  plea  served  its  purpose  at  any  rate  and 
saved  the  day  for  the  AlHes  in  the  Balkan 
regions — so  far  at  least  as  it  had  been  saved 
to  mid-summer  of  1916.  For  the  situation 
had  for  a  year  been  most  menacing  to  the 
allied  interests,  and  only  by  the  friendly  or 


peror  William,  whom  he  married  in  1889. 
In  the  two  Balkan  wars  of  191 2-1 3  he  greatly 
distinguished  himself,  and  the  Kaiser,  anx- 
ious to  tie  so  capable  a  soldier-king  to  his  own 
fortunes,  made  him  a  field  marshal  in  the 
German  army — the  only  sovereign  thus 
honored  save  Francis  Joseph  of  Austria. 
In    a    speech    at    Berlin    acknowledging    this 


French  artillery   passin;;  a   i  ireeic  cavalry  regiment.      1  he   French  were  the  hrsr  of  the  Allied    trnnps  to  land  at  Salonika  for 
the  a.ssistance  of  Servia  when  she  was  assailed  bv  GeriTiany,  .'Xiistro-Himgary  and  Bulgaria 


enforced  cooperation  ot  Greece  could  it  ha\e 
been  met.  That  it  was  grave  was  due  in 
part  to  the  strong  pro-German  sympathies 
of  King  Constantine,  and  in  part  to  the 
diplomatic  and  military  mistakes  of  the 
Allies  in  their  early  dealings  with  the  Balkan 
problem. 

King  Constantine's  early  military  educa- 
tion had  been  at  the  famous  French  school 
of  St.  Cyr.  This  course  completed  he  was 
sent  to  Berlin  where  he  shone  for  some 
time  in  the  uniform  of  the  Imperial  Guards, 
and   became  betrothed    to   the   sister  of  Em- 


honor  the  new  Fi^-ld  Marshal  maladroitly 
ascribed  all  his  military  successes  to  his  post- 
graduate course  in  the  German  army.  The 
French  people  blazed  with  resentment.  Not 
onlv  had  their  pet  military  academy  been 
snubbed,  but  the  vital  fact  that  the  armies 
Constantine  successfully  led  had  been  trained 
by  two  successive  French  commissions  had 
been  ignored.  Hurrying  to  Paris  Constan- 
tine strove  to  dispel  the  hostility  his  speech 
had  created.  But  German  agents  had  been 
ahead  of  him.  antl  while  official  Paris  was 
nnjst    hospitable,    the    mob    before    his   hotel 


so  grosslv  assailed  liitn  that  lie  said  ro 
friend  later  in  Athens,  "As  Ions  •>"  I  live 
shall    never    pardon    the  French    people  for 


fliose  in- 
sults." It 
isfairto  say 
for  C  o  n- 
s  t  a  n  t  i  ne 
that  how- 
ever strong 
his  s  y  m- 
pathy  for 

Germany  he  never  sought  to  array  his  people 
on  the  side  of  the  Teutons.  His  constant 
struggle  was  for  neutrality  and  peace.  The 
earlier  lethargy  of  the  Allies  in  relation  to 
things  Balkan  made  his  position  easier,  his  plea 
the  more  plausible.  Turkey  was  lost  to  them 
nine  weeks  after  the  war  began.  Servia,  some 
part  of  whose  territor\'  might  have  been 
fitting  reward  for  Greek  aid,  was  an  ally  of 
the  British.  The  Allies  could  offer  no  such 
reward,  but  the  Germans  promptly  did. 
The  expedition  to  the  Dardanelles  failed. 
Bulgaria  went  into  the  war  on  the  side  of  the 
Teutons.  Nowhere  in  the  Balkan  regions 
w  as  there  any  indication  that  the  Allies  would 
be  able  to  reward  Greece  for  her  adhesion, 
or  even  have  power  to  defend  her  from  the 
wrath  of  the  embittered  Teutons. 

Against  the  strength  of  Constantine  the 
king  was  arrayed  that  of  Venizelos,  a  popu- 
lar leader.  Himself  a  Cretan,  the  .son  of  a 
farm  laborer,  this  man  had  so  identified  him- 
self with  the  popular  cause  in  Greece  that  as 
far  back  as  1906  he  had  been  made  Prime 
Minister  at  the  demand  of  the  people.  His 
first  act  then  was  to  strip  the  four  royal 
princes  of  their  military  offices,  putting  prac- 
tical soldiers  in  their  places  and  calling  upon 
France   for  a   commission   to   reorganize  the 


Serbian  refugees  arriving  at  Salonika  on 
Christmas  morning.  They  had  been  driven 
(mm  their  homes  by  war  and,  with  what  belongings  they  could 
load  on  a  few  animals,  came  to  ask  the  hospitality  of  foreign 
and  neutral  Greece.  Many  of  the  women  and  children  had 
ost  husbands  and  fathers  in  the  war,  and  some  families  had 
been  separated.  Refugees  poured  into  Salonika  by  the 
thousands  every  day  for  weeks         j 


M:'*'' 


The  British  soldiers  at  Salonika  were  served  with  a  small 
ration  of  beer  twice  a  day,  and  the  attendance  at  the  function 
was  always  100  per  cent.  .-Mcoholics  arc  not  much  used  in  any 
of  the  armies,  the  use  of  spirits  being  entirely  forbidden  except 
under  unusual  conditions,  and  the  amount  of  light  wines  and 
beer  being  strictly  limited 


2^2 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


263 


Servian  officer's  odd  shelter.  Headquarters  of  Major  Merse  (on  platform)  in  command  of  the  advanced  lines  at  Gradek, 
on  the  V'ardar  River.  A  crude  silo  is  shown  at  the  right  of  the  picture.  The  French  and  British  forces  proved  inadequate 
to  save  Servia  from  her  enemies 


army.       Yet  when  reorganization  was  com- 
plete and  the  Balkan  war  of  191 2  was  im- 
pending he  called  Constantine  back  to  the 
head  of  the  reformed 
army.       Constantine 
made  good.      The 
army  adored  hmi,  and 
its   loyalty   alone   en- 
abled   him    later    to 
block  for  a  time  the 
endeavor  of  Venizelos 
to    swing    the    nation 
to  the  Allies'  s:de. 

At  the  close  of  the 
second  year  of  war 
\  emzelos  seemed  to 
be  the  victor  in  this 
struggle.     Though 

stripped    of   his    office  Servian  3-mcli  gun  being  m 


of  Prime  Minister  he  had  the  Greek  people 
and  a  majority  of  the  Parliament  back  of  him. 
Several  times  he  had  appeared  to  be  on  the 

verge  of  triumph,  but 
King  Constantine 
proved  an  adept  in 
diplomatic  procrasti- 
nation, even  mani- 
festing symptoms  of 
the  gravest  illness 
when  a  decisive  mo- 
ment was  at  hand. 
I  he  pressure  of  the 
Allies  upon  Greece 
continued  to  grow 
during  1916.  Finally, 
by  their  insistence 
the  king  was  forced 
d  f.  a  new  emplj.  n,  MI  to  demobilize  his 


264 

arniv,  the  cost 
of  maintaininji 
w  h  i  c  li  had 
brought  Greece 
to  the  verge  of 
li  ankrup  tc  \ . 
At  this  moment 
he  sought  to de- 
hverover  cothe 
Bulgarians — 
led  by  German 
officers  —  three 
forts,  Rupel, 
Spatovo,  and 
Dragotin,  fac- 
ing the  British 
position  at 
Salonika. 
That  proved  to 
be  an  act  of 
rashness  that 
brought  affairs 
to  a  culmination. 


THE    NATIONS     AT     W  A  R 


View  of  Sarajevo  trom  the  suburbs,  showing  mountainous  character  of  the  country 


The  populace  of  Athens 
revolted.  The  king  fled  to  Larissa.  The 
British  instantly  blocked  all  Greek  ports, 
and  the  Entente  Powers  demanded  the  dis- 
missal of  the  existing  cabinet  and  the  appoint- 
ment of  one  in  sympathy  with  their  cause. 
All    this    was    acceded    to   and,    though    the 


Every  man  must  be  his  own  tailor.      Serbians  resting  durini;  a  hard  march 


second  year  of  the  war  ended  with  Greece 
still  nominally  neutral,  her  territory  and  rail- 
ways were  at  the  absolute  disposal  of  the 
Allies  who  also  assumed  authority  over  her 
posts,  telegraphs,  and  harbor  authorities. 
Her  king,  stripped  of  all  power,  was  an  exile 
from  his  capital.  Her  government  was  ad- 
ministered in 
the  interest  of 
the  Allies,  and 
the  one  thing 
lacking  to  the 
actual  partici- 
p  a  t  1  o  n  o  t 
Greece  in  the 
war  was  that 
her  armies 
should  take  the 
field  against 
Bulgaria,  to- 
getlier  with  the 
French,  British, 
and  Italians,  in 
the  autumn 
drive  through 
Servia. 

Ill  at  culmi- 
nating triumph 
for  Venizelos 
or  else  a  civil 
\\ar  seemed 
inevitable 
in  Septem- 
ber, 1916. 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


265 


Copyrijjlu  by  Underwood  &  Undcri 

Strbian   artillery   retreating  through  the  Albanian  Alps 


It  must,  probably,  go  down  as  the  verdict 
of  history  that  in  making  Greece  their  base 
of    operations    against    the    Bulgarians    and 

Teutons,  the  Allies  were  guilty  of  a  violation 
of  neutrality  narrowly  approaching  that  of 
the  German  mvasion  of  Belgium.  Tech- 
nically the  taunts  and  jeers  of  the  partisans 
of  Germany 
were    justified. 

The  rigid  de- 
votion to  the 
lights  of  neu- 
trals which  led 
Great  Britain 
to  declare  war 
when  German 
guns  opened 
upon  the  forts 
at  Liege,  was 
quite  forgotten 
when  British 
troops  landed 
at  Salonika. 

But  the  two 
violations  of 
neutrality, 
though  identi- 
cal in  principle, 
differed  mark- 
edly in  degree. 
In  Belgium  the 
constitutional 
authorities  re- 
fused the  over- 


tures of  the 
Germans  for  an 
orderly  march 
through  their 
countr\ .  The 
first  step  of  the 
invader  towaid 
the  boundary 
at  Liege  was 
met  by  a  can- 
non shot. 

In  Greece 
the  Prime  Min- 
ister  himself 
invited  the  Al- 
lies to  land  at 
Salonika.  He 
asked  of  them 
1 50,000  men 
to  aid  in  guard- 
ing Servia,  the 
ally  of  Greece, 
I  he  right  of 
has  never 


from  Bulgarian  aggression. 
Venizelos  to  issue  the  invitation 
been  questioned  though  the  act  was  repudi- 
ated by  King  Constantine.  The  German 
troops  used  Belgian  territory  as  an  avenue  of 
attack  upon  Belgium's  friend,  France.  The 
British  and  French  troops  used  Greek  terri- 


.d  .V  Uiider.vood 


A  marked  Italian  ;;un  burnliarclin^  an  Austrian  pusitiun  near  Lugana 


266 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


L 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


267 


The  muster  before  entering  the  trenches.  A  company  of  Serbians  at  Lone  Tree  Hill,  Halinchi,  near  Prihp,  answering  roll 
call  before  entering  the  trenches  for  the  last  stand  against  the  Bulgars.  For  many  of  these  brave  fellows  it  was  a  last  roll  call. 
In  the  ranks  were  soldiers  of  all  ages  from  mere  boys  to  grandfathers.     This  picture  was  taken  within  range  of  the  Bulgar  guns 

tory  as  a  base  whence  to  give  aid  to  Greek's 
ally  and  friend  Servia. 


\\  hen  the  Allies  first  sought  the  privilege 
of  landing  at  Salonika  the  King 
himself  admitted  that  80  per  cent, 
of  his  people  favored  their  cause. 
It  was  evident  enough  that  the 
landing  of  the  Allied  troops  was 
approved  by  the  Greek  nation 
and  olficiall}'  authorized  by  the 
Cabinet. 

There  was  furthermore  no  resis- 
tance. The  "invasion,"  so-called, 
was  peaceful  and  benevolent. 
1  here  were  no  burned  and  ravag- 
ed towns,  no  murdered  and  muti- 
lated citizens.  The  Parthenon 
did  not  share  the  fate  of  the 
great  library  of  Louvain.  If 
the  British  and  French  must  ex- 
cuse their  action  on  the  mere  plea 
of  military  exigency  they  may  at 
least  add  that  they  did  not  find 
military  necessity  compelled  the 
burning  of  towns,  the  slaughter  of 


babes,  or  the  violation  of  women.  At  that 
point  the  cases  of  Belgium  and  Greece  sharply 
cease  to  be  parallel. 


bound  for  Corsica 


268  THE     NATIONS     AT    WAR 

CHRONOLOGY  OF  THE  PERIOD  TREATED  IN  CHAPTER  IX 


(A  drive  by  the  Teutons  through  Servia,  Montenegro,  and 
Albania  late  in  the  fall  of  igii  brought  Bulgaria  into  the  war 
on  the  side  of  the  Central  Kmpires,  opened  a  direct  railroad 
line  between  Berlin  and  Constantinople,  helped  to  compel 
the  abandonment  of  the  Gallipoli  expedition  by  the  Allies, 
and  forced  rhe  dispatch  to  Salonika  of  a  Franco-British-Servian 
expedition  of  about  700,000  and  an  Italian  expedition  toN'alona 
with  about  200,000  troops.  It  was  expected  to  be  the  prelude 
to  a  powerful  Turko-(jerman  attack  upon  Suez  and  Kgypt 
but  that  did  not  follow.  It  left  the  .Allies  in  .August  preparing 
for  a  counter-drive  back  through  Servia  and  into  Hungary.) 

October  z,  iqiS-  Bulgaria  masses  troops  on  Servia's  eastern 
frontier. 

Ocloher  ^-y.  Landing  of  70,000  French  and  i;.ooo  British  at 
Salonika. 

October  <).  Austro-Germans  occupy  Belgrade  with  fierce 
street  fighting. 

October  II.     Bulgarians  invade  Servia. 

Oct.  \7  w  November  zz.  Servians  gradually  pushed  out  of 
their  country  and  through  Montenegro  and  .Albania  to  the 
.Adriatic. 

November  4.  Navigation  of  the  Danube  opened  to  the 
Austrians, 

November  30.  First  Berlin  to  Constantinople  express  via 
Vienna  and  Belgrade  established. 

December  8.  Franco-British  and  Servian  forces  pushed  back 
over  the  frontier  into  Greece. 

January  II,  1916.  Austrians  capture  Montenegro  srriMmboKI 
of  Mount  Loytchen. 

January  12.  Austrians  occupy  Cettinje,  capital  of  Monte- 
negro. 

February  26.  Austrians  occupy  Durazzo,  .Albania,  driving  out 
Italians  who  concentrate  at  Valona. 

April  15-30.  Franco-British  force  at  Salonika  reaches  550,000. 
Servians  to  the  number  of  150,000,  refitted  at  Cortu  with 
French  aid,  joins  this  force. 

May  26.  Bulgarians  enter  Greek  territory  and  take  several 
Greek  forts  with  permission  of  that  government.  I  his 
brings  Greek  relations  with  the  Entente  Powers  to  a  climax. 

IlALV.  (Italy  signified  disapproval  of  the  purposes  of  the 
war  by  notifying  .Austria  immediately  upon  the  presentation 
of  that  nation's  ultimatum  to  Servia  that  a  war  growing  out  of 
such  demands  would  be  regarded  by  Italy  as  releasing  her 
from  further  association  with  the  Triple  .Alliance.  Thereafter, 
for  eight  months,  the  final  position  of  Italy  was  in  doubt.) 

April  16,  1915.  Italian  mobilization  results  in  putting 
1,200,000  first-line  soldiers  under  arms. 

April  24.      Rapid  departure  of  German  families  from  Italy. 

April  29.  Italy  reported  to  have  agreed  with  Allies  as  to 
terms  upon  which  she  will  enter  war. 

.U(/v  19.  Italy  issues  Green  Book,  claiuunL;  that  \nsrria  has 
broken  faith. 

May  20.  Chamber  of  Deputies  by  a  vote  of  407  to  74  confers 
power  on  the  government  to  make  war.  Complete  over- 
throw of  Gioletti  and  the  pro-German  party. 

May  21.      Senate  concurs  in  action  of  the  Chamber  of  Depu- 


May  11.     General  mobilization  ordered. 

May  23.     War  declared  upon  Austro-Hungary. 


May  26.  Italian  forces  occupy  Austrian  territory  along  the 
frontier  from  Switzerland  to  the  .Adriatic.  King  \'ictor 
Emmanuel  assumes  command  and  goes  to  the  front. 

May  29.  Large  Iralian  army  trying  to  cross  the  Isonzo  River. 
Italians  advancing  and  Austrians  retreating  throughout  the 
province  of  Trent. 

June  13.  Italians  bombarding  the  fortifications  of  (iorizia 
twenty-seven  miles  from  1  rieste 

June  19.  Rome  reports  that  the  Italian  armies  now  occupy 
twice  as  much  territory  in  the  Irredenta  as  .Austria  offered 
Italy  for  remaining  neutral. 

June  24.      Austrians  heavily  reijntorced  assume  the  offensive. 

June  28.  Italians  enter  terrirory  west  of  Lake  Garda,  cross- 
ing mountains  more  than  8,000  feet  high. 

July  7.     Heavy  fighting  at  the  bridge  head  ot  Gorizia. 

July  16.  Italians  heavily  fortifying  all  positions  captured 
from  the  Austrians. 

July  25.     Austrian  General  Staff  evacuates  Gorizia. 

July  ly.  The  fighting  along  the  Isonzo  reported  to  be  one  of 
the  fiercest  and  most  sanguinary  struggles  of  the  war. 

September  },.     Serious  Italian  repulses  at  Tolmlno. 

September  22.  Italians  drive  Austrians  from  the  Dolomite 
Valley. 

September  23.  .Austrians  evacuate  Monte  Coston  after  a 
defence  of  several  months. 

October  23.  Italians,  still  on  the  offensive,  gain  ground  in  the 
Carso  region  and  the  Tyrol. 

October  29.  -Austrians  still  hold  Gorizia  bridge  head  against 
Italian  attacks. 

November  16.  Italian  bomharduient  ot  Gorizia  begun,  doing 
heavy  damage. 

December  ^-11.  Repeated  unsuccessful  Italian  attacks  on 
defenders  of  Gorizia. 

December  17.  Austrian  defences  at  Gorizia  in  ruins  but  de- 
fenders stdl  hold  out. 

January  16,  1916.  .Austrians  make  heavy  gains  near  Oslavia, 
taking  many  Italian  prisoners. 

February  3-1 1.  Heavy  fighting  around  Gorizia.  but  winter  con- 
ditions in  the  mountains  stopped  operations  for  some  weeks. 

March  14.     Italians  resume  offensive  along  the  Lsonzo  front. 

April  19.  Italians  capture  the  summit  of  the  Col  di  Lana, 
after  exploding  what  were  said  to  be  the  grearest  mines 
used  in  the  war. 

April  26.  .Austrians  reoccupy  part  of  the  Col  di  Lana — 
.Austrian  concentration  seems  to  indicate  a  great  offensive 
soon. 

Mayi'y.  .Austrian  offensive  begun  southeast  of  Trent. 
Italians  abandon  advanced  positions,  losing  many  prisoners. 

.l/(/y  19.      Austrians  enter  Italian  territory. 

June  5-10.  Austrian  offensive  reaches  climax  with  the  re- 
covery of  300  square  miles  of  lost  territory  and  the  capture 
of  300  square  miles  of  Italian  territory. 

June  25.      Italian   offensive   begun   with    500,000  fresh   troops 

and  1,500  big  guns. 
July  I.      Italians  report  recovery  of  one-thml  ot  all  territory 

lost  in  the  Austrian  drive. 

July  22.  Italians  successful  in  the  northern  Dolomite  region 
with  heavy  captures  of  prisoners  and  guns. 


1'HF,     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


i 


CHAPTER    X 


THE   ATTACK   UPON  VERDUN NATURE    OF  THE    POSITION ITS    STRA- 
TEGIC    IMPORTANCE CHARACTER    OF    HISTORy's    GREATEST    CATTLE 

THE       FAMOUS       TRANSPORT       SYSTEM BATTLE      OF     THE      SOMME 


.w 


HEN  the  gray- 
green  flood  of 
German      sol- 
d  i  e  r  s      was 
pouring     into 
France      over 
everv      radroad      and 
highway,  through  vio- 
lated neutral  lands  as 
well  as  by  more  legiti- 
mate routes,  all  Paris, 
dazed    by    the    inroad 
through    Belgium   and 
the  sudden  collapse  of 
such  fortresses  as  Liege 
and  Namur,  said  hope- 
fully, "Look  at  Verdun. 
She  will  hold  out!" 

Well.  She  did  hold 
out.  At  the  end  of 
the  second  year  of  the 
war  she  is  still  holding 
out,  drenched  with 
blood  of  heroes  on  both 
sides;  the  ground  for 
miles  around  plowed 
deep  with  shell  pits 
and  planted  with  the  bodies  of  tens  of 
thousands  of  the  gallant  dead.  She  holds 
out  in  grim  defiance  though  she  never  really 
barred  the  wa}'  to  Paris,  for  in  those  dark 
days  of  August  the  German  army  ignored 
the  grim  gray  fortress  hewn  in  the  solid 
rock  and,  leaving  it  to  one  side,  marched 
on  its  errand  doomed  to  disappointment. 
The  battle  of  the  Marne  sent  the  invaders 
flying  back,  but  what  they  had  done  proved 
the  worthlessness  of  Verdun  as  a  fortress. 
As  a  name,  however,  to  designate  the  fifty 
miles  or  more  of  trenches  which  stretch  out 
right   and    left   from   the   ancient   town   and 


fortress  in  the  rock,  it  has  become  symbolical 
of  the  most  persistent  assault  and  the  most 
dogged  resistance  known  to  militarv  history. 

Fate  plays  curious  pranks  with  cities  as 
well  as  with  men.  Richmond  might  have 
gone  dovvTi  into  history  merely  as  the  chief 
source  of  the  smoker's  blessings  had  not 
Jefferson  Davis  made  it  the  capital  of  the 
Confederacy,  and  compelled  General  Lee 
to  defend  it  even  to  the  ultimate  sacrifice 
of  the  Confederate  army.  \'erdun,  until 
the  German  Crown  Prince  gave  it  immortal- 
ity by  dashing  his  magnificent  legions  to 
pieces  against  its  flame-tipped  barriers,  was 
famed  chiefly  for  its  manufacture  of  sugared 
almonds  and  other  confections  much  es- 
teemed at  French  weddings.  Long  after 
the  war  began  and  German  shells  were  now 
and  then  dropping  in  the  streets  of  the  quiet 
town  the  confectioners  went  peacefully  on 
with  the  manufacture  of  their  "dragees," 
and  even  invented  a  bonboniere,  like  the 
shell  of  a  "French  75,"  which  on  occasion 
would  vociferously  explode  with  a  scattering 
hail  of  sugared  almonds. 

The  old  fortress  of  Verdun,  its  citadel, 
was  built  in  the  days  before  engineers  under- 
stood that  soft  earth  is  a  more  stubborn  re- 
sistant than  solid  rock.  It  was  built  by 
\'auban,  most  famous  of  militarv  engineers, 
whose  works  have  been  relegated  to  oblivion 
by  modern  high  explosives.  The  citadel  of 
Verdun  he  hewed  out  of  a  beetling  cliff,  blast- 
ing out  redoubts  and  battlements,  long  cor- 
ridors, barracks,  and  assembly  halls.  Even 
an  elevator  was  added  by  later  engineers. 
But  if  that  seemed  something  of  an  odditv 
in  a  fort  its  presence  was  atoned  for  by  the 
fact  that  when  war  really  befel  Verdun  all 
the  guns  were  taken  out  of  the  old  citadel. 
Their  place  was  not  there  but  far  off  in  the 


272 


THE     NATIONS    AT     WAR 


trenches  miles  away  from  the  ciry.  The 
triumph  of  Vauban's  engineering  skill,  in  face 
of  the  German  "Jack  Johnsons"  was  con- 
demned to  more  peaceful  uses.  Its  impreg- 
nable galleries  sheltered  the  wounded  brought 
in  from  the  real  front.  Its  casements 
bricked  up  formed  excellent  ovens  where 
bread  by  the  thousand  loaves  was  baked  for 


German  forces  m  France  and  Belgium. 
Naturally  the  Germans  desired  to  do  awa^ 
with  this  ever-present-  menace  at  V^erdun. 
Economically  Verdun  was  of  tremendous 
value  to  the  Germans,  for  its  possession  would 
buttress  then-  hold  upon  the  Basin  of  Brie\-, 
in  which  is  concentrated  90  per  cent, 
of  the  iron  production  of  France.     All  this 


General  view  ot  the  Hall  of  Mechanics  in  the  Grand  Palace  in  Paris.  This  hall  is  devoted  to  machinery  tor  one  purpose 
only — the  relieving  of  human  suffering  and  the  restoration  of  activity  to  disabled  limbs.  The  machinery  is  highly  ingenious, 
and  special  forms  are  provided  for  arms,  hands,  feet,  legs,  spine  and  in  fact  ivexy  part  of  the  body. 


the  army.  Its  corridors  served  for  offices  for 
the  administration  of  the  town  and  as  stor- 
age places  for  the  munitions  of  war  to  be 
employed  elsewhere. 

Though  we  shall  find  that  as  the  fortunes  of 
war  varied  so  varied  the  expressions  of  the 
belligerents  as  to  the  value  of  Verdun;  it  is  in 
fact  a  place  of  great  strategic  importance. 
As  a  guard  to  Paris  it,  with  its  fifty  miles 
of  encircling  forts  and  trenches,  blocks  the 
most  direct  road  from  Germany.  As  a  men- 
ace to  Germany  it  is  the  French  post  closest 
to  Metz.  The  reduction  of  Metz  would 
make   necessary   the   withdrawal   of  all    the 


production  has  been  in  the  possession  of 
Germany  smce  the  first  invasion  of  France, 
and  German  writers  declare  that  without  it 
the  great  works  of  Krupp  at  Essen  could  not 
be  steaddy  operated.  And,  finally,  had  the 
Germans  been  able  to  pierce  the  French  line 
at  Verdun,  the  Battle  of  the  Marne  would 
have  been  undone,  the  way  to  Paris  would 
again  have  been  open,  and  the 'British  in  the 
west  might  ha\^e  been  cut  off  from  the  French 
line  in  the  east.  General  Joffre  saw  th2 
supreme  importance  of  the  Verdun  position — ■ 
not  particularly  the  fort — when  on  the  night 
of  the  Battle  of  the  Marne  he  sent  a  telegram 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


273 


to  General  Petain  ordering  that  the  positions 
on  the  Meuse  be  held  at  any  cost  and  declar- 
ing that  "any  commander  who  shall  give  an 
order  to  retreat  shall  be  court  martialled." 

Throughout  the  early  months  of  the  war 
the  miportance  of  Verdun  seemed  to  impress 
the  Germans  hardly  adequately.  They  had 
almost  enveloped  it  in  their  attack  from  the 


elusive  as  was  all  the  bloodshed  along  that 
long  half-subterranean  line  that  extended 
from  the  English  Channel  to  the  borders  of 
Switzerland.  The  hope  of  the  Germans  was 
to  reach  and  cut  the  one  railroad  line  which 
connected  Verdun  with  the  rest  of  France 
from  which  new  troops  and  supplies  for  the 
beleaguered  fortress  must  be  drawn.    Though 


uJhA 


American  volunteers  oft  to  join  the  French  Army 


Cipyri^ht  by  L'nderwood  &  UnderMood 


Side  of  the  \^'oevre  which  gave  them  posses- 
sion of  St.  Mihiel,  their  point  of  farthest  pene- 
tration into  France  on  the  eastern  front. 
But  then,  when  perhaps  its  reduction  m.ight 
have  been  easy,  they  passed  by  and  devoted 
rheir  attention  to  other  points.  To  keep 
\erdun  isolated  and  idle  rather  than  to  cap- 
ture or  reduce  it  seemed  to  be  the  purpose  of 
their  strategy  in  the  last  months  of  1914. 
In  the  Forest  of  Argonne  on  the  other  side  of 
the  town  the  Crown  Prince's  army  kept  up 
tor  a  whole  year  the  effort  to  cut  off  the  town 
and  isolate  it  from  the  rest  of  France,  but  the 
effort  was  half-hearted  and  without  result. 
This  fighting  partook  of  the  nature  of  all  the 
trench  fighting  in  France,  and  was  as  incon- 


balked  in  this  design  the  Germans  did  ad- 
vance their  heav\-  artillery  to  a  point  so  near 
the  road  that  it  became  unsafe  to  rely  upon 
it  alone.  Then  the  marvelous  highways  of 
France  came  into  play  and  rendered  possible 
that  amazing  organization  of  motor  trans- 
portation which  will  be  described  later. 

Nor  were  the  French  much  more  success- 
ful in  their  efforts  to  dislodge  the  Germans 
from  their  positions  before  \  erdun.  In  their 
great  autumn  offensive  of  191 5  the}-  had 
launched  savage  attacks  upon  the  Germans 
in  the  Argonne  and  Artois  districts.  Some 
ground  was  won,  particularly  in  the  Argonne, 
but  the  vital  German  position,  the  salient 
at   St.    Mihiel  was   unshaken.     The   British 


274 

took  the  town  of  Loos 
with  a  loss  of  some 
50,000  men,  and  the 
French  gained  a  few 
yards  here,  and  a  mile 
or  two  there  in  the 
trenches  of  the  Ar- 
gonne.  but  that  was 
about  the  net  result  of 
the  Allied  drive.  A 
detailed  map  of  the 
positions  shows 
scarcely  any  discern- 
ible difference  in  the 
position  of  the  bel- 
ligerents before  and 
after  the  effort. 

It  had  been  expected 
that  the  Allies  would 
renew    their    drive    in 
the  early  spring.     But 
the      Germans       fore- 
stalled   them    by    be- 
g.i  n  n  i  n  g     a 
savage  fron- 
tal    attack 
on  Verdun  in 
February, 
1916.      It  is 
difficult      to 
comprehend 
the     reasons 
which       im- 
pelled      the 
Germ  an 
General 
Staff      to 
order    this 
attack     and 
to    maintain 
it  for  months 
with  the  loss 
of  hundreds 
of  thousands 
of  men.     As 
time  wore  on 
and        the 
chances      of 
success  grew 
less       favor- 
able the  Ger- 
man      press 
began  to  de- 
preciate   the 
importance 
of     Verdun, 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Only 
IS  staid 
amity, 
as  jolly 


the  soldiers  lauuli  in  France.  The  civil  population 
and  sedate  under  the  shadow  of  the  national  cal- 
but  the  soldiers,  constantly  in  danger  of  death,  are 
as  Frenchmen  are  wont  to  be 


and  declare  that  con- 
tinuance of  the  attack 
was  dictated  only    by 
consideration     ot    the 
moral  effect  its  aban- 
donment   might    have 
upon  public  sentiment 
in  other  lands.      Mili- 
tary     authorities      in 
France,  too,  underesti- 
mated   the    worth    of 
\'erdun    and    seriously 
contemplated  ordering 
its  evacuation.    Rutin 
time  it  became  a  sym- 
bol.       The       German 
people  had  been  edu- 
cated   to   believe   that 
its    capture    was     the 
certain     assurance     of 
victory,  and  the  army 
dared  not  abandon  the 


attack. 


lUii  six  11.-,  for  \'erdun 


One  of  the  many  amnumniini 
lines  at  N'erdun 


pot 


in  the  icar  of  the  f  rench 


To     France 
the    holdhig 
of      Verdun 
was       the 
army's      su- 
preme    test, 
and      the 
army  would 
not  shirk  it. 
Whatever 
their     m  o  - 
t  i  \-  e  s      the 
G  e  '.  m  a  n  s 
launched 
their  historic 
attack  upon 
the    Verdun 
positions  on 
the    2 1  St    of 
February, 
I  9 1  6 .    The 
C   r   o    w    n 
Prince     was 
himself       in 
n  o  m  1  n  a  1 
command. 
Though 
there    was 
growing 
doubt  as  to 
the  military 
capacity     of 
this      eldest 
son  ^  of    the 


'lurs    hiin;;    in- 


I  HE    NAIIONS    AT    WAR 


Kaiser,  political  con- 
siderations made  it 
imperative  that  to  him 
should  fall  the  honor 
of  some  great  victory 
— and  no  German  then 
doubted  that  \ erdun 
was  to  be  the  scene  of 
a  great  national  tri- 
umph. There  was 
every  reason  for  Ger- 
man}'  to  anticipate 
success.  The  winter 
had  checked  opera- 
tions in  the  Russian 
and  Balkan  theatres  of 
war,  and  the  veteran 
troops  from  those 
regions  w'ere  hurriedly 
brought    to   join   with 

troops  from  "I'pres,  the     x„   „,ore   righting  tor  tlum.     l,.rm.in   pi  is 
Somme,  and  the  Aisne.  spected  by  French  officers 

Great  guns 
in  tremen- 
dous num- 
bers, more 
than  3,000 
according  to 
report,  and 
appalling 
calibres  had 
been  concen- 
t rated  as 
early  as  De- 
cember, and 
great  piles  of 
shells  and 
bombs  were 
stored  at 
every  place 
along  the 
point  where 
they  would 
be  needed. 
The  concen- 
tration of 
the  men  be- 
gan in  Janu- 
ary and  for  a 
month  or 
more  they 
were  held 
out  of  action 
abundantly 

led       and     y\  French  reconnoitring  machine  nirh  two  machlm 
equipped     in  Khind  the  pilot 


Cop>'Ti^ht  bv  L'nderwoocl  &:  Undent  ot-tl 

L'uns  joined  together  on  a  turret 


?-75 

every  way  for  the  tri- 
umphant attack  which 
their  general  confi- 
dently expected.  An 
order  of  the  day  issued 
by  General  von  Daim- 
ling,  found  onaGerman 
prisoner,  announced  to 
his  men  that  the  de- 
cisive day  had  come  at 
last,  and  that  their  ir- 
resistible attack  on 
\  erdun  would  put  an 
immediate  end  to  the 
V.  ar.  I  he  plan  for  the 
attack  winch  was  to 
produce  this  tremen- 
dous result  was  that 
which  has  become  typ- 
ical in  this  war — a 
racking  and  crushing 
artillery  attack,  fol- 
lowed by  an 
assault  by 
1  n  f  a  n  t  r  \  . 
With  the 
French  front 
once  broken 
the  Germans 
expected  to 
close  in  on 
\  erdun  from 
belli nd,  cut- 
ting off  the 
1  rench  re- 
treat and  an- 
n  1  h  1 1  a  t  i  n  g 
the  French 
army.  Had 
the  latter 
end  been  at- 
t  a  1 n  e  d  it 
would  in- 
deed have 
been  a  great 
step  toward 
the  conclu- 
sion of  the 
war. 

Perhaps 
rhe  French 
gave  no 
thought  to 
retreat. 


N 


ever 


ess 


th. 
th 


276 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


question  of  how  to  get  their  army  away 
should  disaster  befall,  and  how  to  feed  it  and 
furnish  it  with  fresh  munitions  and  reenforce- 
ments  was  one  of  the  utmost  importance. 
At  the  outset  there  were  about  550,000  men 
in  the  French  army  about  Verdun,  this  num- 
ber rising  at  times  to  as  many  as  750,000. 
To  supply  this  enormous  force  there  was  but 
one  railroad  available,  and  that  one  at  points 
exposed  to  the  Hre  of  the  enemy.  The  Ger- 
mans anticipated  that  the  defenders   would 


there  is  lacking  to  the  citv  any  railroad.  In 
September,  1914,  the  Germans  took  St. 
Mihiel  and  cut  the  railway  coming  north 
along  the  Meuse.  On  their  retreat  from  the 
Marne  the  soldiers  of  the  Crown  Prince 
halted  at  Montfaucon  and  \  arennes,  and 
their  cannon  have  commanded  the  Paris- 
Verdun-Metz  Railroad  ever  since.  Save  for  a 
crazy,  narrow-gauge  line  wandering  along  the 
hill  slopes,  climbing  by  impossible  grades, 
Verdun  is  without  rail  communication. 


The  attack  on  Verdun.     The  German  assaults,  which  began  against  Verdun  on  February  2lst,  continued  with  fury  through  the 

spring  and  summer  unabated 


be  severely  handicapped  by  this  inadequacy 
of  railroad  transportation.  So  they  would 
have  been  had  not  the  French  General  Staff 
recognized  the  situation  and  met  it  by  using 
the  marvelous  French  highways,  level  and 
solid  as  a  floor,  for  the  organization  of  a  sys- 
tem of  transportation  by  motor  trucks  that, 
by  its  perfection  and  efficiency,  aroused  the 
admiration  of  all  military  critics.  The  trans- 
port service  of  an  army  is  as  important  as  its 
strategy  or  its  spirit.  In  fact,  neither  can 
be  maintained  if  there  is  failure  or  delay  in 
bringing  up  reenforcements  or  munitions. 
At  Verdun  the  French  solved  the  problem 
conclusively.  Mr.  Frank  H.  Simonds,  editor 
of  the  New  York  Tribune,  who  visited  Verdun 
in  the  midst  of  the  siege,  thus  describes  with 
convincing  vividness  the  nature  and  appear- 
ance of  this  transport  service : 

"To  understand  the  real  problem  of  the 
defence   of  Verdun    you    must    realize    that 


"It  was  this  that  made  the  defence  of  the 
town  next  to  impossible.  Partially  to  rem- 
edy the  defect  the  French  had  reconstructed 
a  local  highway  running  from  St.  Dizier  by 
Bar-le-Duc  to  Verdun  beyond  the  reach 
of  German  artillery.  To-day  an  army  of  a 
quarter  of  a  million  of  men,  the  enormous 
parks  of  heavy  artillery,  and  held  guns — 
everything  is  supplied  by  this  one  road  and 
by  motor  transport. 

"Coming  north  from  St.  Dizier  we  entered 
this  vast  procession.  Mile  after  mile  the 
caravan  stretched  on,  fifty  miles  with  hardly 
a  break  of  a  hundred  feet  between  trucks. 
Paris  'buses,  turned  into  vehicles  to  bear  fresh 
meat;  new  motor  trucks  built  to  carr\'  thirty- 
five  men  and  traveling  in  companies,  regi- 
ments, brigades;  wagons  from  the  hood  of 
which  soldiers,  bound  to  replace  the  killed 
and  wounded  of  yesterday,  looked  down  upon 
you,     calmly     but     unsmilingly.      From     St. 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


277 


Dizier  to  Verdun  the  impression  was  of  that 
of  the  machinery  by  which  logs  are  carried 
to  the  saw  in  a  mill.  You  felt  unconsciously, 
yet  unmistakably,  that  you  were  looking,  not 
upon  automobiles,  not  upon  separate  trucks, 
but  upon  some  vast  and  mtncate  system  of 
belts  and 
benches  that 
were  steadily, 
swiftly,  surely 
carrying  all 
this  vast  ma- 
terial, carry- 
ing men  and 
munitions 
and  supplies, 
everything 
human  and 
inanimate,  to 
that  \-  a  s  t , 
grinding  mill 
which  was  be- 
yond the  hills, 
the  crushing 
machine 
which  worked 
with  equal  re- 
morselessness 
upon  men  and 
upon  things. 

"Now  and 
again,  too, 
over  the  hills 
came  the  Retl 
Cross  ambu- 
lances; the\ 
passed  \"ou 
r  e  t  u  r  n  i  n  u 
from  the  front 
and  bringing 
within  their 
c  a  r  e  f  u  1 1  >" 
closed  walls 
the  finished 
product,  the 
fruits  of  the 
da\'s  grinding,  or  a  fraction  thereof.  And 
about  the  whole  thing  there  was  a  sense  of 
the  mechanical  rather  than  the  human,  some- 
thing that  suggested  an  automatic,  a  ma- 
chine-driven, movement;  it  was  as  if  an  unseen 
system  ot  belts  and  engines  and  levers  guided, 
moved,  propelled  this  long  procession  upward 
and  ever  toward  the  mysterious  front  where 
the  knives  or  the  axes  or  the  grinding  stones 
did  their  work. 


Glad  to  be  out  of  the  trenches.     French  troops  enjoying  a  period  of  repose  in  the 
rear  after  service  in  the  trenches  in  fronr  of  Verdun 


"Night  came  down  upon  us  along  the  road 
and  brought  a  new  impression.  Mile  on 
mile  over  the  hills  and  round  the  curves, 
disappearing  in  the  woods,  reappearing  on 
the  distant  summits  of  the  hills,  each  showing 
a  rear  light  that  wagged  crazily  on  the  hori- 
zon, this  huge 
caravan 
flowed  on- 
ward, while  in 
the  villages 
and  on  the 
hillsides 
campfires 
flashed  up  and 
the  faces  or 
the  figures  of 
the  soldiers 
could  be  seen 
now  clearl\' 
and  now 
dimly.  But 
all  else  was 
subordinated 
to  the  line  of 
mo\ing  trans- 
ports. Some- 
where far  off 
at  one  end  of 
the  procession 
there  w-as  bat- 
t  le ;  some- 
where down 
below  at  the 
other  end 
there  was 
peace.  There 
all  the  re- 
sources, the 
life  blood,  the 
treasure  in 
men  and  in 
riches  of 
France  were 
concentrating 
and  collect- 
ing, were  being  fed  into  this  motor  fleet, 
which  like  baskets  on  ropes  was  carrying 
it  forward  to  the  end  of  the  line  and  then 
bringing  back  what  remained,  or  for  the  most 
part  coming  back  empty,  for  more — for  more 
lives  and  more  treasure. 

"It  was  lull  night  when  our  car  came  down 
the  curved  grades  into  Bar-le-Duc,  halted 
at  the  corner,  where  soldiers  performed  the 
work  of  traffic  policemen  and  steadily  guided 


278 


THE     NAIIONS     A  I"     WAR 


Colored  troops  fight  for  France;     Part  of  a  regiment  from  Tunis,  on  the  march  In  the  Argonne,  are  on  their  way  to  reenforce 

the  defenders  of  \Vrdim 

the  caravan  toward   the  road  marked  hy  a  we  took  the  road   again,  with   a  thirty-mile 

canvas  sign  Hghted  within  by  a  single  candle  drive  to  Verdun  before  us.     Almost  immedi- 

and    bearing   the  'one   word,    'Verdun.'     All  ately  we  turned   into  the  Verdun   route  we 

night,  too,  the  rumble  of  the  passing  trans-  met     again     the     caravan     of    automobiles, 

port  filled  the  air  and  the  little  hotel  shook  of   cannons,    as    the    French    say.     It    still 

with  the  jar  of  the  heavy  trucks,  for  neither  flowed    on    without    break.     Now,    too,    we 

by  day  nor  by  night  is  there  a  halt  in  the  entered    the    main    road,    the    one    road    to 

motor    transport,    and    the    sound    of    this  Verdun,  the  road  that  had  been  built  by  the 


grmding  is  never  low. 

"It  was   little   more   tlian   da\  light   when 


French  army  against  just  such  an  attack  as 
was  now  in  progress.  The  road  was  as  wide 
as  Fifth  Avenue,  as 
smooth  as  asphalt — a 
road  that,  when  peace 
comes,  if  it  ever  does, 
wdl  delight  the  motor- 
ist. Despite  the  traffic 
It  had  to  bear,  it  was  in 
perfect  repair,  and  sol- 
diers in  uniform  sat  by 
the  side  breaking  stone 
and  preparing  metal  to 
keep  It  so." 

Verdun,  built  on  a  hill 
on  the  bank  of  the  River 
Meuse,  which  at  this 
point  flows  nearly  north 
and  south,  was  sur- 
rounded by  a  circle  ot 
higher  hills.  On  the 
crests     of     these      are 

The  rolhng  Icitchen  stops  for  lunch.     At  the  end  of  a  long,  hard  march  hot  coffee  and  hot       perched       twenty-four 
soup  are  ready  for  the  nun  and  do  much  to  keep  up  their  morale  permanent    fortS,     mak- 


THE     NATIONS    A  T     W  A  R 


279 


A  halt  in  front  of  Hartmansweilerkopf.     A  company  of  the  Foreign  Legion  in  Alsace.     The  high  hill  in  the  background  is  Hart- 
mansweilerknpf,  about  which  the  battle  has  raged  at  intervals  for  two  years 


ing  a  circle  with  a  five-mile  radius  and 
the  city  for  the  centre.  But  it  was  not 
about  these  forts,  with  one  or  two  exceptions, 
that  the  battle  raged.  By  this  period  of  the 
war  it  had  been  too  thoroughly  demonstrated 
that  fixed  fortifications  were  of  but  little 
value,  and  that  a  defence  only  five  or  six 
miles  from  the  citadel  was  no  defence  what- 
soever. Accordingly  the  true  French  defence 
was  in  three  lines  of  earthworks,  with  the 
usual  wue  entangle- 
ments, thrown  out  eight 
or  ten  miles  beyond 
the  ring  of  fixed  forts 
and  forming  a  bow 
nearly  seventy-five  miles 
long  from  Bourelles, 
west  of  \  erdun.  to 
Combres  far  to  the 
southeast.  A  multitude 
of  little  villages  were 
included  in  this  line,  and 
back  of  it  were  the 
twenty-four  forts  so  that 
the  detailed  story  of  the 
battle,  which  at  the  end 
of  eight  months  is  still 
in  progress,  is  filled  with 
confusing  names  of  lo- 
calities most  of  which 
may  well  be  omitted 
here.  Indeed  no  detailed 


nor  technical  report  of  that  titanic  contest 
is  possible.  It  was  a  war  rather  than  a  battle. 
In  it  were  involved  from  first  to  last  not  less 
than  2,000,000  soldiers  with  such  an  equip- 
ment for  war  as  the  world  had  never  before 
known.  At  the  moment  of  writing  these 
lines  it  is  still  in  progress — though  momen- 
tarily with  less  activity  on  the  part  of  the 
Germans — having  lasted  eight  months  with- 
out   interruption.     When  the  Battle  of  the 


Fourth  of  July  parry  at  the  front.     Some  of  the  American   members  of  the  Legion 
waiting  for  their  tram  near  Rheims 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


A  view  near  Verdun.     These  guns  ot  240  niillunetic  calibre  are  niuuntcd  on  specially  cun.srrucicJ  sucl  cars  tiujii  v\luch  tliL>  are 
fired.     Note  the  curious,  mottled  way  in  which  they  are  painted.     This  is  to  render  them  less  visible  to  aerial  scouts 


Aisne  was  fought  steadily  for  twenty-two 
days  in  1914  the  world  wondered,  and  pointed 
to  it  as  the  longest  sustained  conflict  of 
modern  history — Mukden  which  determined 
the  issue  of  the  Russo-Japanese  War  having 
lasted  twenty  days,  and  Gettysburg  which 
saved  the  Union  but  three.  The  Aisne  was 
a  drawn  battle.  Verdun  was  fought  to  bar 
furtherprog- 
ress  of  the 
Germans  to- 
ward Paris. 
So  long  as 
that  barrier 
is  effective, 
as  it  is  to- 
day, it  is  no 
drawn  battle 
but  a  French 
victory. 

The  first 
German  at- 
tack was  di- 
r  e  c  t  e  d 
against  the 
sector  dom- 
inated by 
Fort  Dou- 
a  u  m  o  n  t  . 
That  fort  it 
self,  though 
giving  its 
name  to  the 
seven  and  a 
half  miles  of 
f  ron  t      of 


\  I'l-  ;^iin  that  will  iiL-Mji  hic  a  shot.  A  t;tniii,s  111  the  I'ilikIi  aiiiiy  com  ri\til 
the  idea  of  building  a  dummy  gun  out  of  papers  sent  to  the  soldiers  at  the  front,  and  the 
result  is  shown  in  the  photograph.  It  looks  like  a  240  millimetre  gun,  and  concealed 
in  a  wood,  will  be  spotted  by  enemy  aviators  and  will  draw  many  shells  from  ilieir  big 
guns.     But  no  one  will  be  hurt 


which  it  was  the  centre,  had  been  dismantled 
and  its  guns  mounted  in  the  neighboring 
trenches.  The  attack  began  soon  after  sun- 
rise of  a  bitter  winter's  morning  with  a  furi- 
ous fire  from  the  closely  packed  German  bat- 
teries. French  aviators  flying  over  the 
enemy's  lines  declared  that  it  was  impossible 
to  note  the  position  of  the  different  batteries, 

the     cannon 

stood  almost 
wheel  to 
wheel  in  one 
continuous 
line.  r  h  e 
shells  fl\ing 
up  into  the 
air  looked 
like  a  salvo 
of  thousands 
of  rockets  in 
some  great 
celebration. 
But  their  fall 
released  sti- 
flinggases,or 
the  strange 
fumes  that 
brought 
floods  of 
tears  to  the 
eyes  of  all 
who  came  in 
contact  with 
them,  or 
liquid  fire 
that   burned 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


j8i 


and  seared  every  object  within  reach  and  re- 
fused to  be  extinguished  by  any  ordinary 
means.  Only  the  more  commonplace  shells 
scattered  shrapnel  by  the  tliousand  or  jagged 
pieces  of  metal  to  rend  and  slay  their  victims. 


ceaseless  flow  of  blood,  one  wants  to  see. 
One's  soul  wants  to  feed  on  the  sight  of  the 
brute  Boches  falling.  I  stopped  on  the 
ground  for  hours,  and  when  I  closed  my  eyes 
I   saw  the  whole   picture   again.     The  guns 


O 


Over  the  line  of  batteries  floated   a  number      are  firing  at  200  and  300  yards,  and  shrapnel 

is  exploding  with  a 
crash,  scythmg  them 
down.  Our  men  hold 
their  ground;  our 
machine  guns  keep  to 
their  work,  and  yet 
they  advance. 

"Near  me,  as  I  lie 
in  the  mud,  there  is  a 
giant  wrapped  in  one 
ot  our  uniforms  with 
a  steel  helmet  on  his 
head .  He  seems  to  be 
tlead,  he  is  so  abso- 
lutely still.  At  a 
gi\en  moment  the 
Boches  are  quite  close 
to  us.  Despite  the 
noise  of  the  guns  one 
can  hear  their  oaths 
and  their  shouts  as 
they  strike.  Then  the 
giant  next  to  me 
jumps  up,  and  with 
a  voice  like  a  stentor 
shouts  'Hierda!Hier 
da!'  Mechanically 
some  of  us  get  up. 
(My  wound,  which 
had  been  dressed,  left 
me  free  and  I  had 
forgotten.)  I  was 
unarmed,  and  so  I 
struck  him  with  my 
steel  helmet  and  he 
dropped,  with  his 
head  broken.  An  of- 
ficer who  was  passing 


of  captive  balloons 
from  which  observers 
telephoned  to  gun- 
ners below  directions 
for  the  rectification 
of  their  aim.  No  safe 
post  this,  for  the 
French  gunners  and 
the  French  aircraft 
made  the  balloons 
their  target  with  fre- 
quent fatal  effects. 
"Our  first  lines  were 
almost  levelled  by 
this  avalanche  of 
steel"  writes  one  of 
the  French  officers. 
"Trenches,  parapets, 
shelters,  no  matter 
how  well  made,  were 
utterly  destroyed." 

This  end  attained, 
the  infantry  attack 
followed.  First  re- 
connoitring groups  of 
about  fifteen  men 
each,  then  larger  de- 
tachments  armed 
with  hand  grenades, 
and  after  them  the 
solid  masses  of  the 
unapproachable  Ger- 
man infantry.  In  the 
face  of  this  assault 
the  defenders  stood 
firm.  In  the  crushed 
and  shattered  rem- 
nants     of     their 


PEUGEOT    JULES   ANDRE 

CAPORAL    AU  W-     RtCL'AtNT     D'INFANTERIE 

/*\ORT    POUR    LA    TRANCF. 

HOAVnAGE    DE  LA  NATION 


&Mi^!^s^siT''^im^i^h'i&wmni 


Coinriflil  1-.  :  .-.   i     ;  i I 

The  French  government  presents  a  cummeniorative  dip- 
loma to  the  famihes  of  French  citizens  killed  in  the  war.  This 
is  a  reproduction  of  the  parchment  issued  in  memory  of  the 
first  Frenchman  who  fell  in  the  Great  War 


trenches,  in   the  craters  made  by  the  great  sees    the   incident   and    takes  ofi^  the   man's 

shells,  they  crouched  low,  working  their  rifles  coat.      Below  is  a  German  uniform.     Where 

and     their    machine     guns.     Death    stalked  had   the  spv  come  from  and  how  had  he  got 

,   u„»l,  1; A    X? I, u:.  ..  :_   >u.  ^1.    ..    ;■'  "  "^ 


through  both  lines.  A  French  soldier  in  the 
trenches  at  Douaumont  wrote  for  the  Paris 
!•  igaro  a  description  of  the  fighting  that  smells 
of  the  very  explosives  and  the  blood  itself. 
It  is  violently  French,  of  course,  and  full  of 
defiance  and  contempt  for  the  enem\-,  but 
as  a  battle  picture  it  has  life  and  Lintlouht- 
edly  truth: 

"Despite    the    horror    of    it,    despite    the 


there." 

Early  in  the  battle  the  French  were  driven 
from  their  first  line  of  defence.  Their  own 
writers  insist  that  this  was  the  plan  of  strat- 
cg\'  pre\i<)usly  determined  upon.  Ihev  com- 
pare it  to  the  retreat  from  Mons  and  the  ulti- 
mate halt  to  win  a  victory  upon  the  Marne. 
The    theory    sounds    like    an    afterthought. 


282 


THE     NATIONS    AT     WAR 


One  of  the  villages  on  the  environs  of  \'erclun  showinj;  a  parade  of  newly  arrived  French  troops  prior  to  relieving  their  comrades 

on  the  outskirts  of  the  village 


and  it  is  vastly  more  probable  that  the  first 
four  days  at  Verdun  were  in  fact  a  series  of 
well-earned  victories  for  the  Germans.  At 
any  rate,  m  tliat  period  they  had  driven  the 
defenders  from  their  first  line,  had  taken  the 
villages     of    Haumont,     Brabant,     and     La 


Ihuusaiids  ot  cases  ot  75  nun.  shells  are  stored  here,  but  not  for  long  for  aininiuiitiun  at  Wrdun 
disippears  as  rapidly  as  snow  and  rain 


Wavrille.  Every  foot  of  their  advance  was 
savagely  contested,  for  the  French  were 
fighting  to  hold  the  foe  back  until  their 
own  reserves  could  come  up. 

Douaumont,   tlie   immediate   German   ob- 
jective— village    and    fort    both — had    been 

pounded  out  of  any 
semblance  ot  form. 
It  was  no  longer  a 
fortress,  but  a  mass 
of  shattered  ma- 
sonry. It  was  no 
longer  a  little  typi- 
cal I  rench  vdlage, 
with  its  streets  of 
closelv  built  stone 
houses,  its  church, 
public  square,  and 
cheerful  cafes.  It 
was  a  wilderness,  a 
ghastK'  skeleton  of 
a  town  peopled  only 
bv  corpses.  ^'et 
such  as  it  was  the 
Germans  coveted  it 
— or  rather  were  im- 
pelled with  a  fierce 
purpose  to  make 
that  the  point  of 
piercing  the  French 


THE     NATIONS    AT     WAR 


283 


A  laden  ambulance  passing  through  W-rdun  on  the  way  to  the  base  hospital 


ri;;ill  LtJ   Ulldcr WyuU  tlil  Luilctwyuii 


lines.  Saturday  and  Sunday,  the  25th  and  back  into  action  the  French  captured  the  vil- 
26th,  the  struggle  around  this  point  became  lage  and  enveloped  the  Bavarians  helplessly 
more  violent  and  sanguinary.  "The  enemy  imprisoned  m  a  useless  fort.  For  the  next 
no  longer  count  their  sacrifices,"  said  one  of  week  the  tide  of  battle  swept  back  and 
the  French  reports  of  the  day,  chronicling  a  forth  with  now  the  Germans,  then  the 
commonplace,  for  at  no  time  during  the  war  French,  in  possession  of  the  group  of  ruins 
did  the  Germans 
count  the  price  in 
human  life  they  paid 
for  a  position  they 
were  determined  to 
take.  And  as  a  re- 
sult a  party  of 
Brandenburgers  did 
cut  their  way  into 
the  ruins  of  the  old 
fort  and  the  word 
went  out  from  the 
General  Staff  to  all 
the  world  that  "the 
armored  fort  of 
DouaunK^nt,  the 
cornerstone  o  the 
French  defence  of 
Verdun,  has  been 
carried  by  a  Brand- 
enburg regiment." 
But  the  triumph 
was  for  but  a  little 
while.       Sweeping 


French  int'antrynien  spemiinj:  tlic  Jll^lu  iH<und_vaiire  iilfljooflcsschuFch  k.the.ei^vir.ojis.(rfi^^^ 


284 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Dismuunted  German  Hussars  hold  the  first  line  trenches 


called  Douaumont.  Month  succeeded  month, 
and  as  late  as  August  the  armies  were  still 
fighting  savagely  over  the  scene  of  desola- 
tion and  death. 

Somewhat  east  of  Douaumont  lay  the  fort 
and  village  of  Vaux.  Not  as  powerful  a 
fortress  as  the  former,  even  in  the  days  when 
both  were  formidable,  this  post  early  at- 
tracted the  German  attacks.  Success  and 
failure  alternated  for  several  days.  Tens  of 
thousands  of  lives  on  either  side  were  sacri- 
ficed for  what  was  in  effect  but  a  single  link 
in    an    armor    of  defence.     With    occasiona 


intermissions  the  fighting  went 
on  unabated  until  June  7th 
when,  after  a  particularly  sav- 
age attack,  and  a  bombard- 
ment of  almost  incredible 
ferocity,  the  fort  fell.  A  docu- 
ment found  on  a  German 
prisoner  showed  that  General 
Falkenhayn  (then  chief  of  the 
German  General  Staff)  had 
ordered  that  the  fort  must  be 
taken  at  whatever  hazard  and 
however  great  the  cost.  Every 
engine  of  warfare — gas,  liquid 
fire,  and  lachrymal  bombs — 
was  employed,  and  the  as- 
sailants came  on  in  rows  to  be 
laid  on  the  field  like  swathes 
from  the  scythe  of  the  reaper. 
So  gallant  was  the  defence 
made  by  Major  Raynal,  its 
leader,  that  in  the  midst  of  it 
he  was  made  a  commander  of  the  Legion  of 
Honor.  But  the  ne.xt  day  the  fort  fell  for 
lack  of  food  and  water,  and  the  gallant 
Major  was  sent  to  a  German  internment 
camp.  It  is  pleasant  to  learn  that  the 
Crown  Prince  himself  was  so  impressed  by 
the  heroism  of  the  defence  that  he  gave 
orders  that  Major  Raynal's  sword  should 
not  be  taken  from  him. 


A  Red  Cross  depot  in  ruins 


Phott  b)  Paul  Thompson 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


285 


An  inconclusive  battle  last- 
itiji  tiuht  niDiitlis,  and  in  which 
iiKHf  than  500,000  men  have 
been  sacriHced,  is  unicjiie  in 
the  history  of  warfare.  Hut 
that,  in  a  phrase,  is  the  story 
of  the  Hattleof  Verdun.  Dur- 
ing;; the  first  two  weeks  the 
(lermans  seemed  to  be  carry- 
ing all  before  them,  but  the 
fact  was  that  the  French  were 
retiring  from  weak  positions 
to  stronger  ones,  and  wlien 
confronted  by  the  latter  the 
Germans  stopped.  Only  the 
capture  of  \'aux  was  added  to 
their  earlier  laurels  as  the 
months  rolled  by. 

Undoubtedly  the  salvation 
of  \  erdun  was  largely  due  to 
the  perfection  of  the  new 
"French  75s"  a  type  of  artil- 
lerv  hardly  known  at  the  beginning  of  the 
war  when  the  big  "Busy  Berthas"  of  Krupp 
and  the  great  Austrian  howitzers  held  first 
place  as  engines  of  death.  A  correspondent 
of  the  London  Times  visiting  the  field  at 
\'erdun  gives  this  lively  description  of  a  bat- 
tery of  these  guns  in  action: 

"When!  asked  the  General  to  be  shown  a 
battery   of  75s   every   face   in   the   group   of 


..^ 


W^. 


■^Br 


A  street  in  \'erdun  .itter  six  mcnths'  bomtuniment 

officers  beamed.  Winding  through  the  woods 
was  a  tiny  trail,  and  this  we  followed  until  we 
emerged  into  a  little  clearing.  A  look  dis- 
closed the  hiding  place  of  a  battery.  I  was 
escorted  by  the  young  Captain  in  charge  into 
the  nest  of  one  of  these  guns.  Squatted  com- 
placently on  its  haunches,  its  alert  little 
nose  peered  expectantly  out  of  a  curtain 
of  brush.     If  there  ever  was  a  weapon  which 


■;/>.« 


%?m. 


^^s^- 


i,^; 


<^% 


m 


■  '.:•■■]} 


^M 


li*"^.'  V. 


':'^(^}. 


H.7' 


W^ 


A'j :  •:  '■ 


■r.As.-i 


S^.i 


^:?5Sfc.^i 


''i<iStj<-vi^'ii 


v-^-fl 


:  Irruood  &  Uniieiwuod 


Douauminint  vilUt;L  i)hijti);;iaplKd  Iroiii  a  I' rcnch  aeroplane  flying  at  a  lyeat  altitude 


286 


THE     NATIONS    Al'     WAR 


What  a  sdUlier  sees  tliroiigli  a  trench  periscope 

had  a  personality  it  is  surely  this  gun.  Other 
field  guns  seem  to  me  to  be  cynical  and 
sinister,  but  this  gun,  like  the  French  them- 
selves, has  nothing  malevolent  or  morose 
about  it.  It  is  serious,  to  be  sure,  but  its 
whole  atmosphere  is  one  of  cheerful  readiness 
to  serve.  Its  killing  is  a  part  of  its  imper- 
sonal duty,  as  indeed  one  feels  to  be  the  case 
with  the  clean,  gentlemanh-  soldiers  of  France. 
They  kill  to  save  France,  not  because  they 
have  the  lust  of  slaughter. 


"With  a  speed  of  fire  of  thirty  shells  to 
the  minute  and  with  a  well-trained  crew 
serving  it  with  clockwork  regularity,  it 
resembles  a  machine  gun  rather  than  a 
field  piece  in  action.  So  exquisite  is  the 
adjustment  of  the  recoil  that  a  coin  or  even  a 
glass  of  water  can  be  placed  on  the  wheel 
while  in  action  without  being  jarred  off. 

"In  one  of  the  Russian  battles  one  of 
their  batteries  fired  525  rounds  to  the  gun 
in  a  single  day,  which  seemed  to  me  at  that 
time  an  extraordinary  rate  of  fire.  When  I 
mentioned  this  to  the  Captain,  he  laughingly 
replied,  'I  have  fired  from  this  (four-gun) 
battery  3,100  rounds  of  shells  in  forty-five 
minutes.'  I  listened  to  him  in  amazement. 
'How  long  do  your  guns  last  at  that  rate? 
I  asked  him,  for  the  theory  before  the  war 
was  that  a  field  piece  did  not  have  a  life 
exceeding  8,000  to  10,000  rounds  of  fire. 
The  officer  placed  his  hand  affectionately 
on  the  gun  that  we  were  inspecting.  'This 
is  a  brand-new  gun  which  I  have  just  re- 
ceived,' he  said.  'The  one  whose  place  it 
has  taken  had  fired  more  than  30,000  shells 
and  still  was  not  entirely  finished.'  Then  he 
added,  'You  are  surprised  at  my  speed  of 
fire,  but  there  have  been  75s  in  this  war  that 
have  fired  1,600  rounds  in  a  single  day.' 
From  the  guns  he  took  me  to  his  magazine 
and  showed  me  tier  upon  tier  of  brightly 
polished,  high-explosive,  and  shrapnel  shells 
lying  ready  for  use." 


A   1  iiiuh  lUvKc  for  hreakinj;  thrnuch  wire  entanj;K  in<  nl.s 


THE     NATIONS    AT    WAR 


287 


As  the  weeks  wore  on  the  clettrinination 
to  hold  Verdun  to  the  end  became  a  fixed 
thought  in  tlie  mind  of  the  French  people. 
Whatever  of  value  it  had  had  at  first  as  a 
strategic  point  was  now  discounted  b}"  line 
after  line  of  new  defences  constructed  in  the 
rear  bv  the  French  to  receive  their  troops  and 
beat  back  the  enemy  in  case  the  main  \  erdun 
line  should  be  carried.  But  the  French  were 
obsessed  by  the  idea  that  that  line  never  should 
be  carried.  It  was  a  dead  town.  Its  homes 
and  shops  were  mere  masses  of  ruins.  Its 
Place  d'Armes  was  desolate  and  abandoned 
though  little  scarred  by  shell  fire.  It  was 
there  that  the  Crown  Prince  was  to  have  re- 
ceived the  surrender  of  the  town  at  the  hands 
of  the  defeated  Irench  general.  There  the 
Kaiser  was  to  stand  and  decorate  once  again 
his  favorite  son.  The  square  is  there  but 
neither  Kaiser  nor  Crown  Prince  has  yet 
visited  it,  and  over  it  the  tricolor  still  waves 
defiantly. 

For  the  last  two  months  of  the  Battle  of 
Verdun  the  persistence  of  the  German  attacks 
in  the  face  of  their  tremendous  losses  per- 
plexed the  militar\'  world.  To  strategists 
it  seemed  that  whatever  value  the  spot  had 
ever  possessed  was  gone,  with  the  time  dur- 
ing which  the  French  had  been  permitted  to 
prepare  new  lines  of  defence  should  these  be 
broken.  Yet  day  after  day  and  week  after 
week  the  solid  ranks  of  German  infantry 
were    hurled    against    such    points    as    Dead 


Another  vIl-w  rhrmmh  the  trench  periscope 

Man's  Hill  (L'Homme  Alort)  or  the  Wood  of 
the  Crows,  or  Fort  Vaux.  They  changed 
their  attack  to  the  opposite  side  of  the  Meuse, 
but  found,  there,  too,  that  the  French  had 
erected  such  works  that  no  military  power 
could  possibl}"  dislodge  them.  By  the  9th 
of  April  the  regularity  with  which  the 
French  repelled  every  attack  had  convinced 
all  the  world  outside  of  Germany  that  \  erdun 
would  never  be  taken.  From  that  time  on 
the  operations,   except   for   the   storming  of 


"Une  ot  krupp  s 


o 


V 


M  A  FRENCH  AEROPLANE 

irubbery  is  seen,  has  suffered  most  from  German  shells 


Copyright  by  Luticiwocd  \-  Underwood 


290 


THE     NATIONS    AT     WAR 


A  big  yrenadc  ot  tile  rocket  type 


Fort  \  aiix,  took  on  tlie  characftr  of  a  siege, 
with  only  occasional  attacks.  Reluctantly 
the  German  war  authorities  were  compelled 
to  inform  the  people  that  the  Verdun  attack 
which  had  been  expected  to  end  the  war  had 
ended  only  in  failure.  Perhaps  it  was  to  defer 
or  to  minimize  the  effect  of  this  confession 
that  a  pretence  of  activity  against  the  French 
lines  was  kept  up  until  long  after  the  war 
entered  upon  its  third  year. 

The  French  had  one  great  incentive  to  the 
desperate  defence  ot  Verdun  of  which  the 
non-military  world  had  no  knowledge.  The 
war  had  now  been  in  progress  for  eighteen 
months  or  more,  and  the  greatest  flaw  in  the 
strategy  of  the  Allies  had  been  the  failure  of 
systematic  cooperation.  The  Allies'  fronts 
were  far  separated,  one  from  the  other,  with- 
out those  close  communications  such  as 
would  make  complete  unity  of  action  possible. 

The  Feutons  were  surrounded — a  situation 
wliich  has  its  terrors  to  the  non-military 
mind,    but    is    not   without    its    advantages. 

riie  belligerent  thus  situated  has  shorter 
lines  of  communication  than  its  foes,  and, 
unless  attacked  simultaneously  on  all  sides 
can  shift  its  troops  from  a  front  not  menaced 


The  defense  against  modern  "stink-pots."     The  purpose  of  modern  German  asphyxiating  gas  and  medieval  Chinese  stink-pots 
is  the  same — to  confuse  and  overpower  the  enemy  so  that  an  attack  can  be  made  upon  him  before  he  recovers  M, 


THE     N  A  I  IONS    AT     WAR 


291 


to  one  which  the  L-ntmy  is  assaulting.  1  his 
Germany  had  done  systematically  since  the 
beginnino;  of  the  war.  Her  legions  were 
rushed  from  France  to  save  East  Prussia  in 
1914.  They  were  hurried  from  East  Prus- 
sia after  Hindenburg's  victory  down  into 
Galicia  to  rescue  Austro-Hungary  from  the 
Russian  drive.  They  sped  back  to  Flanders 
to  check  the  French  effort  to  flank  Von 
Kluck's  right  wing  and  cut  his  communica- 
tions. Outnumbered  as  a  whole  by  their 
enemies,  the  Teutons  by  virtue  of  their 
shorter  lines  were  usually  able  to  outnumber 
them  at  any  particular  point  of  attack. 

Late  in  the  winter  of  1916  a  conference  of 
the  Allied  leaders  undertook  to  provide  for 
more  perfect  cooperation  between  their  arm- 
ies. Great  drives  were  planned  for  the  spring 
by  the  trench,  Italian,  and  Russian  armies 
each  in  its  own  field  of  operation,  and  all  to  be 
conducted  simultaneously.  This  menacing 
program  Germany  thought  might  be  lieaded 
off  by  a  brilliant  success  at  \erdun.  Even 
if  complete  success  could  not  be  won,  a 
continuance  of  the  savage  attacks  there 
would  tie  up  so  great  a  part  of  the  French 
arm\-  as  to  compel  the  abandonment  of  the 


A  Ger 


'star  light"  for  use  at  night 


I  he  revival  of  the  steel  hcliiiLt.     1  rcncli  sulJiLrs  wtarinn  head  armor  of  a  pattern  almost  identical  with  that  ot  helmets  worn 
in  England  after  the  Norman  conquest.     They  are  highly  efficient  in  deflecting  rifle  bullets  and  shrapnel  bullets 


292 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


I  lu   ^lKlll^Ull  tort  11  tit  Xcrtluii,  photOKraplinl  li 


drive  planned   for  the  more  western   battle 
area,  or  at  least  cut  down  the  number  of  the 


German 


fts  Illuminating  an  enemy  position 


men  whom  the  French  could  safely  devote 
to  that  purpose.  If  this  were  indeed  the 
reason  for  the  pertinacity  of  the 
German  attack  at  Verdun  those 
who  accepted  it  were  misled. 
Even  while  the  fighting  at  that 
pomt  was  at  its  fiercest  the  Anglo- 
French  offensive  was  launched 
July  I,  1916.  It  was  at  first  di- 
rected against  the  German  lines 
on  both  sides  of  the  Somme  op- 
posite Peronne.  At  that  moment 
the  Russians  had  just  taken 
Czernowitz  and  were  resistlessly 
rolling  on  toward  Lemberg.  Far- 
ther south  the  Italians  were  push- 
ing into  the  Trentmo  and  then' 
guns  were  thundermg  down  upon 
Gorizia,  destined  soon  to  fall.  In 
the  Balkans  the  British,  French, 
Italians,  and  Serbians  were  mass- 
ing at  Salonika  preparatory  to  a 
drive  northward  through  Servia 
to  the  Austrian  line.  On  no  single 
frontier  could  the  Teuton  armies 
gain  anv  rest.  From  no  line  or 
sector  could  the  Kaiser  withdraw 
any  troops  to  succor  a  spot  more 
menaced,   for  every    foot   ot   the 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


293 


^i^^i^^^L:^'^X^i<:i 


\k\\  of  VcrJiin  showing  the  bridge  over  the  Meuse 


C^l-ijrijiht  by  L'lidcrwuoJ  i:  L'ndenvcad 


Constantinople  in  1453 


long  Teutonic  line  needed  all  the  force  that     never  felt  any  apprehension    cf  the    fall    of 
could  be  exerted  there  to  withstand  the  pres-     \  erdun  after  the  middle  of  May,  1916.     The 
sure  of  the  enemy.     At  no  time  during  the 
war  did  the  outlook  for  the  Central  Powers 
seem  so  desperate.     It  had  its  result  in  the 
determination  of  Roumania  to  ioin  the  Allied      .„,    „  ,,- 

,1  .  ,  J  f    1       /^        1  '  "S  tierman    nammen- 

cause,  and  the  virtual  surrender  or  the  Lrreek  werfer"  utilizes  exactly 
government  to  Allied  influence  to  which  the  the  same  ingredients  as 
people  of  that  kingdom  had  already  given  'p']^e"^-\;f  de^e'lw 
their  active  sympathy. 

Nevertheless  the  Germans  continued  their 
bloody  and  seemingly  suicidal  assaults  at 
Verdun  until  the  historian  is  tempted  to  say, 
as  General  Bosquet  said  of  the  Charge  of 
the  Light  Brigade,  "It  is  magnificent,  but 
it  is  not  war." 

It  is  proper,  however,  to  sa}' 
here  that  the  Germans  had  not, 
up  to  August,  1916,  conceded  that 
the  capture  of  Verdun  was  im- 
possible. They  not  only  hoped 
for  ultimate  success,  but  insisted 
that  the  French  w-ere  losing  more 
in  the  defence  than  they  in  the 
attack,  and  finally  that  the  con- 
tinuance of  the  battle  was  worth 
all  it  cost  them  by  diverting  tlu 
French  attention  fromotherfronts. 

The    French    nation,    however, 


294 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


ops  guarding  their  frontier  against  transgression  by  belligerents 


THE     NATIONS     A  I"     W  A  R 


295 


stern  defiance  "They  shall  not  pass,"  which 
the  army  had  adopted  as  a  watchword  in  the 
early  days  of  the  assault,  was  accepted  there- 
after as  the  mere  statement  of  a  truism,  abun- 
dantly demonstrated  and  easily  maintained. 

The  Allied  drive  of  the  Franco-British 
forces  in  Picardy,  which  began  Jul\  ist,  did 
not  for  a  time  produce  the  effective  results 
which  the  nations  involved  had  hoped  for. 
Great  Britain  had  at  last  proclaimed  herself 
tullv     prepared.      lo     the     volunteer     force 


French  took  up  the  line  near  Montauban, 
and  extended  it  to  the  southward  across  a 
similar  country,  intersected  by  the  River 
Somme,  which  their  armies  had  to  span. 
The  whole  country  was  dotted  with  little 
villages  whose  stone  walls  and  houses  made 
favorable  defences  against  the  attacking 
forces.  The  names  of  the  hapless  hamlets 
still  exist,  but  they  themselves  are  now  but 
mere  heaps  of  ruins.  French  they  were,  but 
French   shells  had   to   rend   them  out  of  all 


^.  ■  i^- 


1  * 


'/  vN. 


\  erdiin   aviation   camp   as  seen   troni   a    F  ri-nch   aeroplane 


raised  by  Lord  Derby  were  added  the  con- 
scripts recruited  and  trained  by  Earl  Kitch- 
ener. For  the  first  time  the  store  of  muni- 
tions was  plenteous,  a  tribute  to  the  effi- 
ciency of  Lloyd  George.  Sir  Douglas  Haig 
led  the  British  forces,  General  Foch  the 
French,  while  supreme  command  over  both 
was  exercised  by  General  Joffre.  The  line 
on  which  the  British  operated  may  be  called 
the  Bapaume  line,  after  the  little  town  of 
that  name.  It  was  about  eleven  and  a  half 
miles  long,  extending  over  a  slightly  rolling 
country,  plentifully  sprinkled  with  villages 
and  orchards.  When  the  armies  first  settled 
upon  it  like  a  blight  the  land  was  covered 
with  wheat   fields,  poppies,   and   beets.     The 


semblance  of  form    that    tin-   Germans   who 
tenanted  them  might  be  dri\en  out. 

At  the  beginning  the  British  carried  all 
before  them.  Pozieres,  Contralmaison,  and 
Longueval  fell  to  their  advancing  hosts. 
The  Germans  were  strong  in  their  defence. 
In  clumps  of  woodland,  in  ruined  houses,  and 
stone  barns  they  hid  machine  guns  and  rrench 
mortars.  But  this  resistance  was  beaten 
down  by  the  cannonade.  Germans  were 
buried  alive,  in  their  dugouts  and  cellars,  by 
the  explosion  of  the  monster  shells  which 
made  a  mountain  where  there  had  been  a 
cellar,  or  a  crater  where  there  had  been  a  hill. 
At  Montauban  the  Teutons  had  such  a  net- 
work  of  trenches,   traverses,    redoubts,    and 


296 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


communications,  all  guarded  by  barbed  wire, 
that  no  infantry  could  have  assaulted  it  and 
lived.  What  the  British  shells  did  to  it  is 
vividly  described  by  Philip  Gibbs,  a  war 
correspondent: 

"It  was  the  most  frightful  convulsion  of 
the  earth  that  the  eyes  of  man  could  see. 
The  bombardment  of  the  British  guns  tossed 


must  lie  buried  there.  But  some  had  been 
left  in  spite  of  the  upheaval  of  the  earth 
around  them,  and  into  some  of  these  I 
crept  down,  impelled  by  the  strong,  grim 
spell  of  those  little  dark  rooms  below  where 
German  soldiers  lived  only  a  few  days  ago. 

"The  little  square  rooms  were  fitted  up 
with  relics  of  German  officers  and  men. 
Tables  were  strewn  with  papers.     On  wooden 


CupjTiiilit  Uy  L'nderwood  &  I'mterwo 


Brave  firemen  fighting  a  fire  lighted  by  incendiary  shells  111  V  LiJun 


all  these  earthworks  into  vast  rubbish  heaps 
and  made  this  ground  a  vast  series  of  shell 
craters  so  deep. and  so  broad  that  it  is  like  a 
field  of  extinct  volcanoes.  The  ground  rose 
and  fell  in  enormous  waves  of  brown  earth, 
so  that  standing  above  one  crater  I  saw  be- 
fore me  these  solid  billows  with  thirty  feet 
of  slopes  stretching  away  like  a  sea  frozen 
after  a  great  storm. 

"The  British  must  have  hurled  hundreds 
if  not  thousands  of  shells  from  their  heaviest 
howitzers  and  long-range  guns  into  this 
stretch  of  fields.  Even  many  of  the  dugouts 
going  thirty  feet  below  the  earth  and  strongly 
t-mbered  and  cemented  had  been  choked  with 
the  masses  of  earth  so  that  many  dead  bodies 


bedsteads  lay  blue-gray  overcoats.  Wine 
bottles,  photograph  albums,  furry  haver- 
sacks, boots,  belts,  and  kits  of  every  kind  all 
had  been  tumbled  together  by  the  British 
soldiers  who  had  come  here  after  the  first 
rush  to  the  German  trenches  and  searched 
for  men  in  hiding.  In  one  of  the  dugouts  I 
stumbled  against  something  and  fumbled  for 
mv  matches.  When  I  struck  a  light  I  saw 
in  a  corner  of  the  room  a  German  who  lay 
curled  up  with  his  head  on  his  arms  as 
though  asleep.  I  did  not  stay  to  look  at  his 
face,  but  went  up  quickly,  and  yet  I  went 
down  into  the  others  and  lingered  in  one  where 
no  corpse  lay,  because  of  the  tragic  spuic  that 
dwelt  there  and  put  its  spell  on  me. 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


297 


"An  incident  was  told  me  by  a  kilted  Ser- 
geant as  he  lay  wounded.  From  one  of  the 
dugouts  came  a  German  officer.  He  had  a 
wild  light  in  his  eyes,  and  carried  a  great  axe. 

"'I  surrender,'  he  said  in  good  English, 
and  in  broad  Scotch  the  Sergeant  told  him 
if  he  had  an  idea  of  surrendering  it  would  be 
a  good  and  wise  thing  to  drop  his  chopper 
first;  but  the  German  officer  swung  it  high. 


no  more  swish  of  bullets,  but  only  a  rising  of 
smoke  clouds  and  black  dust. 

"Longueval  was  a  heap  of  charred  bricks 
above  the  ground,  but  there  was  still  trouble 
below  ground  before  it  was  firmly  taken. 
There  are  many  cellars  in  which  the  Germans 
fought  like  wolves  at  bay,  and  down  in  the 
darkness  of  these  places  men  fought  savagely, 
seeing  only  the  glint  of  each  other's  eyes  and 


mmmmm 


t 


Hie  village  of  Vaux  after  a  terrific  battle 


and  it  came  like  a  flash  past  the  Sergeant's 
head.  Like  a  flash  also  the  bayonet  did  its 
work. 

"While  the  men  were  cleaning  up  the  dug- 
outs in  the  first-line  trenches  other  men 
pressed  on  and  stormed  into  Longueval  vil- 
lage. The  great  fires  there  which  I  had  seen 
in  the  darkness  died  down,  and  there  was 
only  a  glow  and  smoulder  of  them  in  the  ruins; 
but  the  machine  guns  were  still  chattering. 

"In  one  broken  building  there  were  si.\' 
of  them  firing  through  holes  in  the  walls. 
It  was  a  strong  redoubt,  sweeping  the  ground 
"which  had  once  been  a  roadway  and  now  was 
a  shambles.  Scottish  soldiers  rushed  the 
place  and  flung  bombs  into  it  until  there  was 


feeling  for  each  other's  throats,  unless  there 
were  bombs  still  handy  to  make  a  quicker 
ending. 

"It  was  primitive  warfare;  cavemen  fought 
like  that  in  such  darkness,  though  not  with 
bombs,  which  belong  to  our  age." 

The  French,  meantime,  fighting  farther  to 
the  eastward,  were  meeting  with  similar  suc- 
cesses. Hardecourt,  Curlu,  Compierre,  and 
Becquincourt  fell  to  their  arms.  After  three 
days  ot  fighting  they  held  as  trophies  ten 
batteries  of  heavy  artillery,  many  machine 
guns,  and  nearly  10,000  prisoners.  The 
British  by  that  time  had  6,000  prisoners,  and 
the    capti\e    host    nicreased    rapidly   day    by 


298 


THE     NATIONS     AT    WAR 


(.'ulliii  ini;  iliL  liuijt\  Ittt  hihiiul  Liy  the  Russians  111  trtiKlies  captured  trom  them  by  the  (Sernians 


day.  A  correspondent  who  visited  the  French 
lines  July  9th  gives  this  description  of  its 
advanced  position  near  Peronne: 

"As  far  as  the  eye  can  see  the  view  is 
utterly  the  same:  utterly  monotonous,  noth- 
ing   but    desolate    slopes    that    once    were    a 


The  skeleum  wui  k  dI  an  inuii- it;ujuinl  hunih-proof  shelter 


thickly  populated  French  countryside.  The 
complete  inhumanity  of  outlook  strikes  one 
tremendously.  Here  two  great  armies  are 
at  death  grips,  yet  apart  from  the  incessant 
tumult  of  cannonade  and  the  never-ending 
rows  of  little  smoke  clouds — new  ones  form- 
ing before  the  preceding  ones  have  time  to 
melt — one  might  be  thousands  of  miles  from 
civilization.  Our  maps  are  of  little  assistance. 
Here  should  be  Feuillers,  there  Flaucourt, 
farther  on  Assevilliers,  but  one  can  dis- 
tinguish nothing  save  heaps  of  blackened 
stones  that  appear  through  the  glasses. 
Even  the  roads  have  been  swept  away 
bv  the  bombardment.  Nothing  but  ditch- 
Hke  trench  lines  mark  the  presence  of  humans. 

"Suddenly  voices  cried:  'Look  over  there, 
\ou  can  see  soldiers.'  About  halt  a  mile 
before  us  one  sees  groups  of  men  like  ants 
working  busily  on  the  hillside.  Through 
the  glasses  one  sees  that  they  are  sheltering 
themselves  with  extraordinary  care.  Some 
have  strange  oblong  shields  like  the  ancient 
Roman  legionaries.  Others  are  grouped  under 
a  kind  of  casemate  on  wheels  whose  root 
touches  the  ground  m  front  rising  in  a  curve 
behind  to  give  room  for  the  workers.  Still 
others  hide  behind  a  ripple  of  ground  or 
hillocks. 

"All  are  working  furiously  with  picks  and 
shovels.  I  have  been  told  that  the  British 
losses  have  been  heightened  by  an  utter  dis- 
regard of  danger.  Even  when  not  engaged 
in  attacks  our  Allies  seem  still  not  to  realize 


THE     NATIONS    AT     WAR 


Z99 


Officers'  ciLiartds  in  an  underground  buuiu-piuul  Juguut 


the  necessity  of  unremitting  caution.  But 
the  French  have  learned  the  lesson  that 
Verdun  hammered  home — that  the  best 
soldier  is  he  who  regards  his  life  as  belonging 
to  France,  something  precious,  never  to  be 
risked  save  when  sheer  necessity  demands  it. 
That,  combined  with  the  magnificent  artil- 
lery service,  is  the  reason  why  the  French 
losses  in  this  battle  have  been  less  than  half — 
I  speak  from  intimate  knowledge — those  in 
any  previous  French  offensive  in  proportion 
to  the  number  of  troops  engaged." 

It  must  not  be  thought  that  the  Germans 
failed  in  any  degree  to  oppose  the  Anglo- 
French  advance  with  equal  gallantry.  The 
assailants  won  not  a  foot  of  ground  without 
paving  the  price.  After  the  first  successful 
rush  of  the  British,  continuing  for  five  days, 
further  advance  on  that  section  of  the  line 
was  checked  and  the  Germans  took  the 
counter  offensive.  They  did  not,  however, 
regain  anv  of  the  lost  territory,  nor  were  they 
able  to  check  the  French  who  advanced  stead- 
ily though  slowly  in  the  direction  of  Peronne. 
But  the  stubborn  German  resistance  had 
compelled  a  deadlock  on  all  but  four  and  one- 
half  out  of  the  twenty  and  one-half  miles  ot 
battlefront.  By  the  ist  of  August  German 
writers  were  declaring  that  the  Battle  ot  the 
Somme,  as  this  whole  operation  had  come  to 
be  known,  was  a  failure,  and  had  degenerated 
into  mere  trench  warfare.  At  the  moment 
their     contention     was     well     founded,     but 


later  activity,  in  August  and  September,  of 
which  this  volume  cannot  treat  in  detail, 
carried  the  tricolor  again  triumphantly  for- 
ward. But  even  at  that  the  announcement 
of  the  German  military  authorities  that  they 
had  prepared  new  defensive  positions  back  of, 
and  quite  as  strong  as,  their  main  line,  gave 


A  busy  scene  in  a  trench  dugout  before  Verdun 


300 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


UPr-^OtjiagK;  w..>-.-  t.  :j»T«»sn  1..  -?5S 

Cupyri^'lU  l)y  I'ntierwoutl  i^  Uuderwood 

FixikIi  solilurs  engage  in  field  sports  Ixhind  lines  after  fightinii  in  two  great  Verdun  battles 

little    promise   that    the  Allied    drive   would  and   it  was  a  paradoxical  sight  to   pass  for 

result  in  the  early  expulsion  from  France  of  miles     American     harvesters,     reapers,     and 

the  invaders.     Indeed   the  determination  of  hinders,     and    motor     threshing     machines, 

the  Teutons   to   hold   their  ground,   not   for  working  peacefully  within  the  roar  and  range 

weeks  only  but  indefinitely,  impressed  every  of  the  guns. 


observer.     A  correspondent  of  the  New  York 
Tinifs,    Mr.    Cyril    Brown,    writes    from    the 
field     on     this     subject 
thus: 


"It  is  worthy  of 
notice  that  Germany's 
defensive  fight  against 
England,  the  'hunger 
war,'  IS  being  carried 
right  up  the  trenches. 
Every  arable  square 
inch  in  this  part  of 
France  in  German  hands 
which  I  have  seen  is 
under  cultivation,  and 
promises  a  bumper  crop 
of  rye,  oats,  wheat,  and 
barley,  little  damaged 
by  the  Battle  of  the 
Somme  except  immedi- 
ately back  of  the 
trenches  and  about  the 
villages  which  are  under 
heavy  fire.  French 
civilians  were  already 
busy  getting  in  the  har- 
vest, ably  assisted  by 
the    German     reserves, 


Still  another  phase  ot  the  food  war  is  to 
be  seen  here  at  the  front.  The  aristocratic 
old  Colonel  showed  me 
part  of  his  regimental 
piggeries,  ten  very  fat 
grunting  hogs,  so  busy 
eating  that  they  paid  no 
attention  to  the  corre- 
spondents or  the  French 
shells  howling  overhead. 
The  titled  swineherd 
told  me  that  each  Ger- 
man company  at  the 
front  now  has  a  troop 
of  ten  hogs  to  eat  up 
its  food  scraps.  Effi- 
ciency could  go  no 
further. 

"The  penultimate 
front  and  its  immediate 
rear  are  in  general  more 
important  than  the  first- 
line  trenches  for  sizing 
up  the  present  condition 
and  the  prospects  of  the 
modern  battle.  Here 
the  most  significant  fact 

Observauon  post  on  the  first  line  at  L'Homme  Mort       WaS     the     right     ot      the 

(Dead  Man's  Hill)  'shiller'    divisions     be- 


THE     NATIONS     AT     WAR 


301 


All  that  is  left  iif  a  trench  after  the 

hind  the  front — the  uniformed  laborers  en- 
gaged in  laying  line  after  line  of  field  forti- 
fications, digging  and  delving  as  if  against 
time.  For  the  Germans,  while  not  admitting 
the  necessity,  are,  nevertheless,  preparing  to 
defend  every  foot  of  French  soil  by  a  stand 
every  few  hundred  yards  or  so. 

"I  walked  down  a 
narrow,  winding  path- 
way through  a  jungle  of 
underbrush  full  of  in- 
fantry'reserves.  It  was 
the  strangest  gypsy  col- 
ony I  had  seen  on  any 
front.  The  men  were 
living  in  galvanized  zinc 
sheds,  semi-cylinders 
about  ten  feet  in  diam- 
eter, easily  transport- 
able, quickly  set  up,  ab- 
solutely rainproof,  and 
resembling  miniature 
models  of  the  Zeppelin 
hangars.  Eight  men 
could  sleep  beneath  each 
zinc  dome. 

"At  first  blush  there 
seems  to  be  little  to 
choose  between  the 
locked  foes.  A  longer 
study  of  the  great  bat- 
tle front  from  all  angles 
tends  to  correct  this  im- 
pression,  and   warrants 


tui^Kj  i'j' I'aiil  1  hoiiipson 

curtain  of  fire"  has  descended  upon  it 

the  opinion  that  the  margin  of  Teuton  su- 
premacy on  the  ground  is  small,  but  adequate 
for  all  practical  purposes,  while  in  the  air  it 
is  still  smaller,  but  enough  to  turn  the  verv 
slow  scales  of  battles.  If  the  Teutons  can 
maintain  this  margin  of  safety — and  I  saw 
no  reason  here  for  believing  they  could  not 
— they  have  ultimate 
victory  in  the  Battle  of 
the  Somme  clinched." 


When  the  second  year 
of  the  war  closed  the 
Battle  of  the  Somme 
was  still  raging  and  bade 
fair  to  equal  the  Battle 
of  Verdun  in  its  du- 
ration and  the  sacrifice 
of  human  life.  Like  that 
contest  it  promised 
nothing  decisive  for  the 
year 1916. 

Horrifying  though  the 
sacrifice  of  human  life 
has  been  it  is  only  too 
evident  that  many  more 
years  of  war  must  be 
fought  before  either  bel- 
ligerent will  be  crushed 
by  loss  of  life  alone. 
Signs  of  suffering  are 
many,  of  exhaustion 
few.  The  Austrians,  it  is 
true,    iiave    manifested 


J 


i'aul  Thompson 

.Munuiiu-m  tu  I  hose  who  fell  in  iftj^at  \'erdun,  in  the 
garden  of  the  Bishops  Palace  at  Verdun 


;o2 


THE    NATIONS    A  T     W  .\  R 


DOt^lPlETRRE     fff^yl 


NCOUPT 


'  PROYART 


/■ 


•^"BARLEUX  I 


JnTAv 


>TTE 


SOYECOORT    , 


VILLEF 


LE  MESNIL 


RIE 


HARBONNIEF 


&VAUVILLERS 


LIHOMS 


rRESNEs  J^™os- 


I 
ATKIES 


I  VERMANDOVILlE 
\  / 


?^ 


E«Y 


rosiere! 

X- 

/ /         nCHARCOURl 


SCALX    OF    MILES 


OniECCURT 


FALYV 
=»A«GNY 


/' 


Progress  iiiaclu  by  Anglu-1- icikIi  forces  in  tlic  Battle  of  the  Somiiie  after  six  weeks'  figlivint;  sIhpw  ii  bv  broken  line 


THE     NATIONS     AT     WAR 


303 


How  the  French  artilltr\'  h:irri 

weakness  by  calling  boys 
below  and  men  above  nor- 
mal military  age  to  the 
colors.  But  the  prodigious 
slaughter  in  the  German 
and  French  lines  does  not 
seem  to  have  checked  the 
steady  oncoming  of  new 
fightmg  forces.  The  Ger- 
mans declare  that  the 
French  are  "bled  white," 
that  the  nation  is  obhter- 
ated,  but  France  neither 
admits  it  nor  manifests 
the  irreparable  loss  to  the 
most  observant  visitor. 
Conservative  estimates 
put  the  losses  of  the  Allies 
in  the  period  including  the 
operations  around  Verdun 
and  the  Battle  of  the 
Somme  at  about  these  fig- 
ures: 


hefore  Verdun  devastate  Hun  cohimns 


the  Allies'  effective  forces, 
the  Teutonic  losses  are 
estimated  at  about  1,750,- 
oco  of  which  i,oco,ooo 
are  chargeable  against  the 
army  rolls  of  the  Germans 
alone.  Though  relatively 
less  than  the  losses  of  the 
Allies,  this  loss,  in  pro- 
portion to  the  total 
strength  of  the  two  bel- 
ligerents, is  actually 
greater.  Competent  sta- 
tisticians estimate  theTeu- 
tonic  loss  as  10  per  cent, 
of  their  total  fighting  force, 
and  that  of  the  Allies  as 
about  7  per  cent.  For  the 
whole  war  from  its  begin- 
ning to  September,  1916, 
the  Allies  are  believed  to 
have  lost  10,000,000  and 
the  Germans  8,ooo,oco 
men,  not  all  permanently, 
as  about  50  per  cent,  of 
those  wounded  or  missing 
are  returned  to  the  ranks. 


i 


French 
British 
Italians 
Russians 


■KX),CXX) 

400.000 

2(X).000 

1,000,000 


\Vith    approximately 
2,000,000  thus  struck  from 


Restorini;  a  maimed  foot  to  usefulness.  France  has  taken  over  for  military  uses 
the  maKnificcnt  Grand  Palais,  in  Paris,  where  so  many  exhihitions  have  been  held,  and 
the  upper  floors  are  devoted  entirely  to  hospital  treatment  for  convalescent  soldiers 


304 


,'? 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Firncli  piiilii-i  lUtlng  behind  lia  hms  .a  \rnliin 

CHRONOLOGY  OF  PERIOD  TREATED  IN  CHAPTER  X 


(The  German  attack  upon  Verdun,  beginninK  February  21, 
1916,  was  still  in  progress  at  the  close  of  the  second  year  of  the 
war,  August   i,   191 6.     At  the   latter  date  it   appeared   that 
success  could  not  possibly  crown  the  German  efforts.     In  all 
probably  750,000  men  were  put  out  of  action    in    this    pro- 
digious conflict.     Begim  originally  by  Germany  to  assure  her 
control  of  the  iron  mines  of  Lorraine,  and  to  capture  a  F'rench 
railroad,  the  attack  came  ultimately  to  be  pressed  mainly  in 
order  to  give  the  Crown  Prince  a  chance  to  win  a  great  triumph. 
Verdun  was  defended  by  the  French  less  for  its  strategic  value 
than  because  its  abandonment  would  be  heralded  throughout 
the  wotld  as  a  crushing  defeat  to  the  Allied  cause.) 
February  2\.     After  three  days'  bombardment  300,000  Ger- 
mans under  the  Crown  Prince  attack  French  trenches  west  of 
the  Meuse. 
Ffbruary  25.     Germans  advance  over  a  twenty-mile  front  on 
both  sides  of  the  Meuse  where  they  capture  part  of  Port  de 
Douaumont  and  then  lose  it. 
March  30.     Germans  capture  Maiancourt. 
March  31.     German  night  attack  completes  capture  of  village 
of  Vaux,  which,  on  March  nth,  had  been  announced  as  the 
capture  of  the  Fort  de  Vaux. 
April  3.     French  in  counter-attack  retake  part  of  Vaux  village. 
April  c,.     Germans  capture  Haucort,  west  of  the  Meuse. 
April  8.     French    withdraw   from    Bethincourt,   west   of  the 

Meuse. 
April!).     Germans  make  a  general  attack  over  twenty-mile 

front  on  both  sides  of  the  river. 
April  30.     Germans    make    fierce    but    unsuccessful    assault 

against  Dead  Man's  Hill,  west  of  the  Meuse. 
May  5  and  6.     Fierce  bombardment  and  capture  of  French 

trenches  on  north  side  of  Hill  304,  west  of  the  Meuse. 
May  8.     French  lose  more  trenches  at  Hill  304,  and   1,300 

prisoners. 
May  21.     French  recover  Haudromont  quarries,  east  of  Meuse. 
May  22.     French  recapture  part  of  Fort  Douaumont. 
May  24.     Germans  take  Cumieres,  west  of  Meuse,  and  again 

occupy  Fort  Douaumont. 
June  2.     Germans  begin  a  general  assault  on  Fort  de  Vaux, 
five  miles  northeast  of  Wtdun  City. 


■i 
J 


take  few  un- 


JuiieG.      CJermans  occupy   Fort  de  N'aux, 
wounded  prisoners. 

June  12.     Germans  penetrate  advance  positions  on  Hill  321, 

four  miles  from  Verdun. 
June  15.     French  win  at  Le  Mort  Homme  and  Caillette  Wood. 

June  22.  French  recover  ground  between  Fumin  and  Chenois 
Woods  and  Germans  are  repulsed  at  Hill  321. 

Julv  1-29.  Germans  gain  footing  at  Thiaumont  work,  Dam- 
loup  redoubt,  and  Hills  304,  295,  Le  Mort  Homme,  and  265, 
only  to  be  excluded  by  the  French  with  great  slaughter, 
(iermans  remove  300,000  men  for  service  on  the  Somme 
and  the  great  Verdun  offensive  comes  to  a  deadlock,  tem- 
porary or  final. 

(The  Franco-British  offensive,  which  began  July  I,  1916, 
north  and  south  of  the  Somme,  is  directed  against  German 
railway  communications.  Its  ultimate  purpose  is  to  force 
the  retirement  of  the  Germans  from  !•  ranee.  As  late  as 
September  it  was  still  in  progress  and  almost  uniformly  suc- 
cessful along  its  line.  At  that  time  more  than  150  square 
miles  of  French  territory  had  been  redeemed.) 

July  I.  Franco-British  offensive  begins  north  and  south  of 
the  Somme  after  a  bombardment  by  the  British  ol  the  whole 
front  from  Ypres  to  the  Somme  for  five  days,  interspersed 
by  night  raids  with  the  taking  of  prisoners. 

/u/)'  2-10.  British  take  Fricourt,  Ovillers,  and  La  Boisselle, 
and  reach  Contalmaison;  the  French  capture  five  towns  on 
the  way  to  Peronne,  cut  the  railway  to  Cbaulnes,  and  take 
Hill  97  overlooking  Peronne. 

July  w-ii,  British  and  French  casualties  placed  at  3,000; 
(iermans  at  150,000.  British  advance  through  Trones 
Wood,  leveling  all  defences,  and  cover  a  twelve-mile  front 
to  a  depth  of  five  miles.  The  French  penetrate  on  a  front 
of  six  miles  to  a  depth  of  six  miles,  (ierman  reenforcements 
arrive  from  before  Verdun. 

July  21-29.  The  British  storm  and  level  Delville  Wood  and 
take  Contalmaison  and  Pozieres  and  push  on  over  the  Albert- 
Bapaume  Road  northeast  and  occupy  all  of  l.ongueval. 
The  French  meet  German  counter-attacks  south  of  the 
Somme,  establish  a  new  line  south  of  Soyccourt,  and  bom- 
bard Pironne. 


i^ 


3o6 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


< 


CHAPTER     XI 


WAR  S     ECHOES    IN    ASIA    AND    AFRICA — LOYALTY    OF    BRITISH  COLONIES — REBEL- 
LION IN  IRELAND — THE   AEP.IAL   WAR — CASE   OF  MISS   CAVELL — COST  OF  THE  WAR 


4 


th 


at 


lan  soldier  i 


Kameru/iian  forests 
roared  at  1  sing-tau  because 
politicians  at  Westminster 
(r  Wilhelmstrasse  pulled 
the  strings. 

This  fighting  in  far-dis- 
tant lands  was  uniformly 
unfavorable  to  German\ 
mainly  because  it  was  war- 
fare in  which  naval  force 
was  the  decisive  factor,  and 
the  British  navy  was  all 
powerful.  But  these  scat- 
tered operations  were  prac- 
tically without  any  effect 
whatsoever  on  the  final  out- 
come of  the  war.  Indeed  it 
has  been  suggested  that  it 
might  have  been  better  had 
Great  Britain,  instead  of  ex- 


CARCELY  was 
war  declared 
when  the  thun- 
der of  the  Ger- 
man guns  at 
Liege  was  echoed 
from  every-  one 
of  the  f o  u  r 
quarters  of  the 
globe.  Peoples 
scarcely  knew 
whether  Servia  was  in 
Europe  or  Asia  rushed 
to  arms  as  the  result 
of  the  assassination  of 
Austria's  Arch  Duke. 
Men  to  whom  Belgium 
meant  no  more  than 
Ooonalaska  tore  at 
each  other's  throats  on 
the  banks  of  the  Yel- 
low Sea 
or  in  the 
depths 
of  the 
Guns 


in  his  garden  by  .Mr.  Hare 

)07 


pending  her  energies  in  China,  Mesopotamia, 
and  Africa  concentrated  all  her  forces 
upon  the  fighting  in  France  where  the 
outcome  of  the  gigantic  struggle  must  ulti- 
mately be  determined.  But  the  criticism 
hardly  holds.  The  campaigns  in  Mesopo- 
tamia were  needful  for  the  protection  of  the 
East  Indian  frontier,  and  the  British  armies 
in  Palestine  were  sent  thither  to  guard  the 
Suez  Canal.  On  the  China  coast  most  of  the 
fighting  was  left  to  the  Japanese,  who  had 
a  very  immediate  interest  there,  while  the 
invasion  and  subjection  of  the  German  col- 
onies in  Africa  was  necessary  in  order  to 
furnish  the  Allies  with  captured  territory 
to  use  as  a  set-off  to  the  German  conquests 
when  the  peace  conference  with  its  bartering 
should  begin. 

How    considerable   were    these    conquered 
German  colonies  may  be  judged  by  a  state- 
ment made  in  the  House  of  Commons  by  A. 
Bonar  Law,  British  Colonial  Sec- 
retan,',  that  at  that  time,  July 
14,    191 5,    the    Allies    occupied 
German      colonial      possessions 
amounting     to     450,000 
square  miles.      Most  of  this 
land    was    in    South  Africa 
where   at  the  beginning  of 
the  war  Germany  held  more 
than  a  million  square  miles 
in  the  regions  of  Togoland, 
Kamerun,       Southwest 
Africa,    and     East    Africa. 
Wild,  indeed,  and  with  but 
a    sparse   settling   of  Euro- 
peans along  the  coast  and 
the  rivers,  is  this  territory, 
but  it  is  nevertheless  an  em- 
pire in  the  making,  worth 
struggling  for.    Should   the 
determined    dr'ves    of   the 
Allies     on     the     plains    of 
Flanders   and    the    hills    of 
Champagne  be   unavailing 


Mr.    .Xsquith,    Prime    Minister   of  Great 
:ain,     photographed    with    his    small    son 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Canadians  crossing  a  newly  constructed  pontoon  bridge  at  a  Canadian  training  camp 

to  drive  the  Teutons  from  their  po- 
sitions in  Belgium  and  France,  then 
these  broad  expanses  of  African  plains 
and  forests  will  in  the  final  settlement 
be  offered  as  part  payment  for  the  Ger- 
man surrender  of  their  fruits  of  con- 
quest. On  the  other  hand,  should  the 
Allies  clear  France  and  Belgium  by  force 
of  arms  this  mighty  sub-tropical  empire 
will  be  theirs.  This  is  one  reason  why 
talk  of  peace  at  the  end  of  the  second 
year  of  war  was  discouraged  in  the 
chancelleries  of  the  Allies. 
7  It  is  impossible  to  describe  the  cam- 
paigns by  which  the  Germans  were  ut- 
terly stripped  of  their  colonial  posses- 
sions. The  blows  of  the  Allies  fell  fast, 
and  were  of  irresistible  force.  1  he 
colonies  to  go  first  were  the  insular 
possessions  in  the  Pacific  which  were 
speedily  taken  by  the  colonial  troops  of 
Australia  and  New  Zealand — destined 
later,  in  connection  with  the  Can- 
adians, to  win  fame  for  their  prowess  at 
Gallipoli  and  in  Flanders  under  the  nick- 
name of  "The  Anzacs."  Japan  aided  in 
stripping  Germany  of  her  Asiatic  insular 
possessions  most  of  which  were  turned 
over  to  Australia,  though  some  naval 
bases,  like  Tsing-tau  were  held  by  the 
subjects  of  the  Mikado.  British  and 
French  troops  together  took  Togoland 

The  .-Xnnanite   1  ruops  on  their  way  to  Camp  Gallieni,  near  Versailles       On  the  north  shote  of  the  Gult  ot  Guinea. 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


309 


A  street  scene  in  Jericho,  uhicli  has  changed  but  little  in  four  thousand  years 


Southwest  Africa  was  overrun  by  the 
Boers  under  General  Botha,  who  sixteen 
Aears  before  had  headed  the  Boer 
rebelhon  against  British  suzereignty. 
Kamerum — larger  than  France  and 
Germany  combmed — and  German  East 
Africa  were  better  prepared  for  defence 
than  any  other  outlying  station  of  Ger- 
man Imperial  power.  1  hev  were  heavih 
garrisoned  by  both  German  and  native 
troops  amply  equipped,  and  were  in 
communication  with  Germany  by  many 
wireless  stations.  In  Kamerum  the 
campaign  for  subjection  was  conducted 
by  the  British  and  French  in  unison. 
Complete  success  was  attained  by  the 
surrender  of  the  last  German  post, 
Mora,  February  18,  1916.  It  is  believed 
that  the  captured  territory  will  be  di- 
vided equally  between  the  victors.  In 
German  East  Africa  the  defenders  had 
established  fortified  posts  all  over  the 
country  defended  b\  about  50,000  native 
troops  with  German  officers.  The  rugged 
character  of  the  terrain,  the  dense 
jungles,  the  narrow  trails  through  the 
impermeable  undergrowth  held  easily  by 
a  single  machine  gun  against  all  comers, 
gave  the  defence  a  notable  advantage. 
Fhe  attack  was  left  to  Boer  troops,  led 
by  General  Smuts,  who,  like  General 
Botha,  had  been  a  revolutionist  during 
the    Boer  War.     Late   in    the    struggle 


An  ancient  and  beautiful  arch  over  one  ot  Jerusalem's  streets 


3IO 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


311 


Belgian  and  Portuguese  col- 
onies f'lom  their  contiguous 
territory  joined  in  the  in- 
vasion. In  August,  1916, 
Southeast  Africa  was  not 
entirely  subdued,  but  the 
military  situation  there  left 
no  doubt  that  German  au- 
thority would  be  obliterated 
by  the  end  of  the  year. 

Hut  while  the  Germans 
had  been  losing  colonies, 
they  had  been  taking  and 
holding  great  expanses  of 
territory  belonging  to  the 
powers  with  whom  they 
were  at  war.  The  balance 
sheet  of  lost  and  won  was 
not  so  unequal  as  the  para- 
graphs on  the  colonial  war- 
fare would  indicate.  At 
the  end  of  the  second  year 
of  war  the  belligerent  pow- 
ers were  in  possession  of 
the  following  extents  of 
territories  not  previously 
classified  as  theirs: 


The  Canadian  contingent  was  completely  equipped  by  the  Dominion  govern- 
ment and  sailed  for  England  with  hotses,  field  guns,  small  arms,  hospital  corps,  com- 
missary equipment,  ammunition  and  every  detail  ready  for  active  service.  Even  a 
motorcj-cle  corps  for  dispatch  riding  was  included 


Great  Britain 

Russia 

Germany  (Including  Belgium,  part  of  France, 
and  a  great  area  in  Russian  Poland)     . 

I-'rance 

Austria 

Bulgaria 


AREA  NOHMAI. 

SQUARE  MILES    POPULATION 

2,510,000       22.00O.(KK) 


412.000         5,.350.IKXI 


127.000 
112.fi00 
31.500 
I/.IXX) 


29.0(KI.(NK) 

l.KDfl.dllll 
3.  10*  I.I  H 10 
2.27(J,IIIKI 


The  patriotic  enthusiasm  and  zeal  of  the 
Boers,  who  had  so  lately  been  in  active  war 
upon  Great  Britain,  was  one  of  a  series  of  im- 
portant incidents  which  united  to  demon- 
strate the  great  power  and  cohesiveness  of 
the  British  Empire  and  the  loyalty  of  even 
the  most  distant  colonies  to  the  mother 
country.  Prior  to  this  war  not  only  did 
Britain's  enemies  hope,  but  her  friends 
gravely  feared,  that  any  serious  danger  to 
her  far-flung  empire  would  be  at  once  at- 
tended by  the  revolt  of  some  of  its  colonies 
seeking  independence.  Such  an  event  was 
confidently  looked  for  by  the  Teutonic 
powers,  and  they  employed  every  possible 
method  of  intrigue  to  arouse  rebellion  in  such 
colonies  as  seemed  promising  for  that  end. 
A  brief  rebellion  was  indeed  stirred  up  in 
British  South  Africa  among  a  few  of  the 
Boers  still  nursing  the  grievance  of  their 
defeat  sixteen  years  earlier.  But  it  enlisted 
the  support  of  but  few,  even  of  that  people, 


312 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


French  poilus  behind  Verdun,  waiting  to  go  into  action 


and  was  in  fact  put  down  by  Boer  troops  and 
Boer  generals.     Like  efforts  to  incite  rebel- 
lion in  Egypt  proved  utterly  futile.     While 
it  is  known  that  the  Teutons  relied  greatly 
upon  arousing  revolution  in  India,  and  indeed 
planned  their  southern  drive  in  Asia  Minor 
with  this  end  in  view,  no  serious  outbreak 
ever  became   known  to  the  world.     At  the 
height   of  the   German    advance   southward 
there   was   ap- 
parent   a    cer- 
tain   degree  of 
nervousness  in 
British       com- 
ments   on    the 
Indian      situa- 
tion.    But  this 
wholly     disap- 
peared   as    the 
year  wore  on. 

The  record 
of  Australia, 
New  Zealand, 
and  Canada  in 
the  warwasone 
of  unqualified 
loyalty,  en- 
thusiasm, and 
sacrifice.      The 


..v'^fe'^'- 


The  end  of  the  charge.  Bomb  throwers  who  headed  a  rush  on  the  German 
trenches.  To  do  this  is  almost  certain  death,  and  yet  there  are  always  plenty 
of  volunteers  when  the  call  comes 


Anzacs,  as  the  soldiers  of  these  colonies  were 
called,  set  the  high-water  mark  for  bravery 
and  efficiency  in  the  British  lines.  Volunteers 
all — for  the  conscription  in  England  did  not 
extend  to  the  colonies — they  came  in  ever- 
increasing  numbers  and  won  the  highest 
plaudits  for  their  soldierly  qualities. 

The  most  serious  break  in  the  record  of 
British    loyalty    occurred    in    Ireland.     The 

Irish  question 
is  one  that 
Great  Britain 
has  ever  with 
her  and  that 
many  hold  will 
not  be  settled 
except  by 
granting  com- 
plete indepen- 
dence to  the 
Irish,  a  major- 
ity of  whom 
are  intolerant 
of  British  do- 
minion. At 
the  moment 
war  broke  out 
Parliament  had 
passed  an  Irish 


'  9wmV 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


^13 


South  African  volunteers  arrivin;;  at  Cape  Town 


home  rule  bill;  the  Protestants  of  Ulster 
had  armed  themselves  and  threatened  to 
resist  its  enforcement  by  arms;  some  Brit- 
ish officers  in  high  command  had  laid  down 
their  swords  rather  than  coerce  the  L  isterites, 
and  many  others  had  threatened  to  do  like- 
wise should  the  moment  of  action  arrive. 
The  homerulers  outside  of  Ulster,  -taking 
the  cue  of  their  adversaries,  also  armed  and 
drilled  for  ac- 
tion. The  out- 
break of  war, 
August  1, 1914, 
stopped  for  the 
moment  this 
threatened 
civil  war. 

The  discon- 
tent of  Ireland, 
however,  was 
not  allayed. 
Though  a  great 
majority  of  the 
Irish  people 
sy  mpath  ized 
with  the  Allies 
the  irreconcil- 
able faction  led 
by     the     Sinn 


A  little  corner  of  a  trench  si 
guard  against  grenades,  and  the  barbed  w 
attacks 


Fein  Society,  who  believe  that  Ireland  should 
be  free  and  independent,  seized  upon  the  mo- 
ment to  plot  a  secession  from  Britain.  Un- 
doubtedly both  moral  and  material  aid  was 
g]\en  by  Germany.  A  picturesque  figure 
in  the  revolutionary  movements  was  Sir 
Roger  Casement,  an  Irishman  who  had 
achieved  prominence  in  the  British  consular 
service,  and  had  been  rewarded  for  his  es- 
pecial effici- 
ency by  a  pen- 
sion and  a  title. 
Despite  these 
honors  Case- 
ment held  him- 
self an  Irish- 
man rather 
than  an  Kng- 
lishman.  1  he 
war  had  hardly 
begun  before 
he  visited  the 
United  Stares 
trying  to  raise 
funds  for  an 
Irish  revolu- 
tionary'^ move- 
ment. Thence 
he     went     to 


sand  bags  and  steel  shields  used  to 
ire  entanglements  that  keep  off  infantry 


3H 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


315 


Indian  sulJicib  un  tlic  way  ti>  the  Imnt  in  Ir 


true  forts. 
Streets  were 
closed  by 
barricades 
and  many 
p  a  s  sersby 
were  shot. 
Dublin 
Castle  was 
attacked, 
but  the 
rebels  were 
beaten  off. 
M  e  a  n  t  i  m  e 
they  had 
erected  a 
Provisional 
Govern- 
ment, pro- 
claimed the 
Irish  Repub- 
lic, and  es- 
tablished a 
newspaper 
to  defend  their  cause. 

But  that  cause  was  hopeless.  In  a  short 
week  the  Republic  was  snuffed  out  and  the 
gallant,  if  misguided,  men  who  planned  it 
had   paid   for  their  act  with   their  lives.     A 

British  gunboatinthe 
Liftey  shelled  the  re- 
publicans' fortified 
positions,  and  a  large 
force  of  troops  under 
General  Sir  John 
Maxwell  cleared  the 
streets  of  Dublin  of 
the  rioters.  On  Sat- 
urday the  provisional 
government  ordered 
the  republican  forces 
to  lay  down  their 
arms. 

In  the  moment  of 
victory  the  British 
government  was  mer- 
ciless. Fourteen  re- 
publican leaders  were 
immediately  exe- 
cuted, seventy-three 
sent  into  penal  ser- 
vitude, and  i,70^>  de- 
ported. Roger  Case- 
ment, stripped  of  his 
ablf  of  defence  and  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^T^^^^T^^^T"  title,  was  tried  for 
soon  made  them  into  French  soldiers  bringing  in  their  wounded  Corporal  nigh        treason        and 


Germany 
where  he 
worked  in 
the  prison 
camps  try- 
ing to  induce 
Irish  prison- 
ers to  relin- 
quish their 
allegiance 
and  enlist  in 
o  rga  n  i  za- 
tions  to  fight 
the  Allies. 
He  had  prac- 
tically no 
success 
whatsoever, 
and  then 
turned  to 
trying  to  stir 
up  sedition 
in  Ireland  it- 
self. Though 
he  always  denied  receiving  monetary  aid  from 
Germany,  he  certainly  had  the  assistance  of 
her  authorities  in  his  work  in  the  prison 
camps,  and  at  the  climax  of  his  career  was 
furnished  with  a  German  submarine  to  take 
him  to  Ireland,  and 
an  auxiliary  cruiser 
laden  with  arms  which 
he  hoped  to  land.  But 
fate  was  against  him. 
He  was  captured  in 
the  very  act  of  land- 
ing, April  24,  1916, 
and  the  cruiser  with 
Its  cargo  was  sunk. 

What  Casement 
was  planning  was 
made  clear  when  the 
news  of  liis  capture 
reached  Dublin.  In- 
stantly the  city  was 
at  war.  Members  of 
the  Sinn  Fein  Society 
seized  the  General 
Post  Office  and  tried 
to  cut  off  all  tele- 
graphic communi- 
cation with  England. 
Armed  bands  seized 
other   buildings   cap- 


3i6 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


Kookies  getting  down  to  the  real 
business  of  war 


hanged  in  Pentonville  yard. 
There    was    a    wide-spread 
feeling     that     the     15rit- 
ish    authorities     had     been 
wiser  iiad   they  been   more 
merciful.      Certainly    they 
left  the  Irish  (juestion,  that 
has  plagued   them  for  cen- 
turies,   more     bitter     than 
ever.     Casement  showed  so 
many  evidences  of  an  un- 
balanced mind  that  to  spare 
him    would     have     seemed 
only  an  act  of  ordinary  hu- 
manity, and  the  high  per- 
sonal character  of  those  or- 
dered  to    summary    execu- 
j^i    t  i  o  n  , 
without 
trial, cer- 
tainly   would     have    justified 
clemency.     A   certain    degree 
of  resentment  was  aroused  in 
other  lands  and  a  great  meet- 
ing in  New  York  thanked  "  the  Government  of 
Germany  for  extending  to  Ireland  as  fast  as 
the  present  military  situation  will  permit  the 
same  kind  of  aid  as  was  rendered  to  the  in- 
fant American  Republic  by  France." 


licnth  tioops  practicing  with  the  riHc  behind  the  hnng  hne 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


317 


It  was  but  seldom,  however,  that  the  charge 
of  dehberate  inhumanity  was  brought  against 
either  the  French  or  British  authorities. 
\\  hen  such  a  charge  was  made  against  any 
of  the  belhgerents  the  one  accused  gave 
evidence  of  the  potency  of  pubhc  opinion  by 
the  earnestness  of  its  endeavors  to  disprove 
the  charge.  The 
case  of  the  Red 
Cross  nurse,  Edith 
Cavell,  put  to  death 
hurriedly  and  al- 
most secretly  by  the 
German  authorities 
in  Brussels  stirred 
the  whole  civilized 
world. 

Miss  Cavell.  a 
woman  of  English 
birth,  was  serving  as 
a  nurse  in  one  of  the 
Red  Cross  hospitals 
in  Brussels  during 
the  German  occu- 
pation of  that  city. 
In  October,  1915, 
she  was  arrested, 
charged  with  having 
h^ejped  many  Eng- 
lish "and  some  Bel- 
gian soldiers  to  cross 
the  line  into  Hol- 
land, whence  some 
of  them  were  able  to 
get  back  to  England. 
The  offence  was 
clearly  a  crime  under 
German  military 
law,  and  was  admit- 
ted by  Miss  Cavell. 
But  the  Germans 
not    only     inflicted 

upon  her  the  extreme  penalty  of  death,  but 
conducted  her  trial  and  execution  in  a  way 
that  shocked  humanity  and  aroused  bitter  re- 
sentment in  England  and  the  United  States  as 
well.  Toward  the  United  States  Minister  to 
Brussels,  Brand  Whitlock,  who  appealed  for  a 
commutation  of  sentence,  or  at  least  a  delay 
in  executing  it,  the  Germans  took  an  attitude 
at  once  arrogant  and  deceptive.  They  con- 
cealed as  long  as  possible  the  fact  that  sen- 
tence had  been  passed,  and  did  all  in  their 
power  to  have  the  execution  over  before 
the  United  States  Minister  sliould  know  of  it. 
Sentenced   at  five  o'clock  in   the   afternoon 


Miss  Cavell  was  shot  dead  at  two  the  next 
morning.  She  was  denied  prior  to  the  trial 
the  opportunity  to  consult  with  her  counsel 
— who  had  been  designated  for  her  by  those 
intent  upon  her  death — and  prior  to  her  ex- 
ecution she  was  refused  a  consultation  with 
her  own  clergyman.     Her  foes  provided  both 


Boy  scout  pointing  tli 


!i  J  rujiicu 


inJuv.   ul   \\  l;uby 
raiders  fired 


.ibL.L 


Lull;,  ri.;h!  I'\  S|-irt  .v  I  .erieral 

to  tht  sea  whence  the  Germar 


her  legal  and  her  spiritual  advisers.  In  th' 
brief  space  between  the  sentence  and  execr- 
tion  Minister  Whitlock  made  an  earnes: 
appeal  for  clemency  basing  his  right  to  speak 
upon  the  fact  that  at  the  moment  the  United 
States  Ambassadors  in  London,  Paris,  and  St. 
Petersburg  were  protecting  German  interests 
and  succoring  German  citizens  in  those  lands. 
Moreover,  even  then,  the  United  States  was 
one  of  the  greatest  forces  in  the  work  of  feed- 
ing devastated  Belgium — a  task  v.hich  by  all 
the  dictates  of  humanity  should  have  been 
performed  by  Germany.  None  the  les.-i  Mr. 
Whitlock's  appeal  was  ignored  and  the  sen- 


3i8 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


I 


General  Ferdinand  Foch,  Commander  of  the  French  armies  on  the  Somme 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


319 


The  Allies  shipped  Serhian  rel'uKees  by  the  thousands  to  Corsica,  where  arrangements  were  made 

others  were  sent  to  Italy  and  some  to  France 

tence  executed  without 
an  instant's  delay.  In 
a  war  which  has  cost 
its  milhons  of  lives  and 
in  which  innumerable 
women  have  met  fates 
more  inhuman  and 
more  frightful  than 
that  of  Miss  Cavell, 
this  incident  caused  an 
expression  of  world- 
wide public  condemna- 
tion vastly  more  vig- 
orous than  its  seeming 
miportance  warranted. 
In  the  United  States 
especially  the  callous 
indifference  to  the  ap- 
peals of  our  Minister 
caused  bitter  feeling 
against  German  mili- 
tarism. 

There  is  much  reason 
to  believe  that  certain 
incidents  of  her  sub- 
marine and  aircraft 
warfare  cost  Germany 
more  by  awaking  the 
hostility  of  neutrals 
than  she  gained  in  mili- 
tary   advantage.       It 


1  he  map  shows  German  possessions  in  Africa  before  the 
war.  The  area  of  Togoland  is  33,cxx>  scpiare  miles.  Ger- 
many's other  African  possessions  were  the  Cameroon  Pro- 
tectorate, 191,000  square  miles;  German  Southwest  Africa, 
322,000  square  miles,  and  German  East  .Africa,  384,000 
square  miles.  Germany  has  lost  practically  all  this  territory 
in  the  war.  As  the  chief  economic  force  pressing  Germany 
into  the  war  was  the  need  for  colonies  to  provide  for  a 
rapidly  Increasing  population,  the  loss  of  this  great  African 
tield  wdl  be  a  serious  blow 


to  shelter  and  feed  them.      Many 

was  apparent  enough 
as  the  months  passed 
by  that  German  of- 
ficial opinion  had  come 
to  regard  the  sinking 
of  the  Lusitania  as  a 
blunder.  It  did  not 
check  for  an  hour  the 
service  of  passenger 
ships  between  the 
United  States  and  bel- 
ligerent ports;  it  did 
not  delay  or  reduce  the 
shipments  of  munitions 
of  war,  but  it  did  bring 
the  United  States  to 
the  verge  ot  entrance 
upon  the  war,  and 
build  up  a  body  of 
anti-German  senti- 
ment in  this  country 
that  was  for  a  time 
menacing.  It  may  be 
noted  in  passing  that 
Great  Britain  later  by 
\exatious,  arrogant, 
hurtful,  and  unwar- 
rantable interference 
with  our  foreign  trade 
and  our  mails  did  much 
to  neutiali/e  this  st-nti- 


320 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


M.  Raymond  Poincarc,  President  of  France 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


S2I 


Moving  reenforcements  toward  the  French  trenches 

ment  by  creating  an  anti-British  sentiment  al-  President  to  employ  the  armed  forces  of  the 

most  as  strong.     Indeed  while  the  first  year  of  nation  to  compel  Great  Britain  to  respect  the 

the  war  closed  with  the  United  States  and  sanctity  of  our  mails,  and  cease  unwarrant- 

Germany  on   the  verge  of  a   serious  break,  able   interference  with    American   commerce 

the  second  year  had  hardly  ended  when  Con-  on  the  high  seas, 

gress,   by  formal  legislation,  authorized   the  The  German  use  of  Zeppelins,  or  dirigible 


French  nstivis  un  liic  way  to  the  trenches 


322 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


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t    j:=  r3 


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B  e 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


balloons,  also  cre- 
ated a  certain  hos- 
tile sentiment  to 
tha.  nation  among 
neutral  peoples.  In 
one  respect  the  use 
of  aircraft  almost 
revolutionized  strat- 
egy in  this  war.  The 
aeroplanes,  with 
\v'hich  in  diftermg 
types  all  the  bellig- 
erents, after  the 
earliest  days,  were 
about  equally  pro- 
vided, put  an  end 
to  secrecy  in  warfare.  Scouting  above  the 
enemies'  lines  they  detected  masked  batter- 
ies, noted  the  movement  of  troops,  checked 
surprises,  made  cavalry  scouts  practically 
useless.  No  nation  will  ever  hereafter  fail 
to  include  a  great  fleet  of  flyers  of  the  aero- 
plane tvpe  in  its  military  establishment. 

But  the  dirigibles  which  the  Germans  had 
brought  to  the  point  of  greatest  perfection 
in  their  Zeppelins  have  not  yet  proved  their 
worth.  Marvelous  machines  as  they  are, 
and  likely  to  be  adapted  to  peaceful  uses  after 


T 


raining 


Kitclii 


the  war,  they  have 
as  yet  made  no  rec- 
ord of  notable  mili- 
tary achievement. 
It  IS  (]uite  true  that 
as  the  Zeppelins 
were  exclusively  in 
German  hands,  and 
most  of  the  avenues 
of  publicity  con- 
trolled by  the  Allies, 
a  great  veil  of  silence 
has  been  flung  about 
some  of  the  rumored 
exploits  of  the  Zep- 
pelins. There  is  no 
authenticated  case  of  a  Zeppelin  successfuUy 
attacking  a  trench,  a  fort,  or  inflicting  seri- 
ous damage  upon  a  battleship.  Though  re- 
peated raids  have  been  made  upon  England 
no    great    military    base    has    sufl'^-'ted    from 

Zeppelin 
^^     ~"^*»^«^,^^  bombs.  Civ- 

^■^^  ^'**'*-  ilian      prop- 

e  r  t  y  e  m  - 
ployed  tor 
p  e  a  c  e  f  u 
uses,  and 
civilian 
ives,  ohen 
those  of  wo- 
rn e  n     and 


mob"  to  rush  the  Germans,  a  lesson  that 
soon  proved  useful 


Searchlight  crew  that  helped 


)wn  a  Zeppelin 


WAR 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


served  no  imaginable  military  purpose,  unless 
it  has  been  to  impress  the  German  people  that 
the  horrors  of  v/ar  were  bemg  brought  home 
to  the  English.  As  against  this  has  been  the 
fact  that  in  neutral  lands,  the  Zeppelin  raids 
have  spread  the  idea  that  to  Germans  drop- 
ping bombs  on  a  hospital,  or  killing  vvom.a 
and  children  in  a  theatre,  is  worthy  of 
national  applause.  s.j.h 

With  a  degree  of  national  folly  that 
amounted  almost  to  arrogant  defiance 
of  all  neutral  opinion,  the  German 
government  on  the  last  day  of  January, 
1917,  announced  the  inauguration  of  a 
policy  that  from  thevery  moment  ot  its 
inception  made  war  with  the  United 
States  as  certain  as  the  rising  and 
setting  of  the  sun. 

Looking  back  upon  the  situation  as  it 
existed  at  that  time  the  historian  is 
almost  forced  to  the  conclusion  that 
the  Kaiser's  advisers  deliberately  deter- 
mined to  force  the  United  States  into 
war.  This  nation  was  far  from  desiring 
to  enter  upon  the  conflict.  It  was,  it  is 
true,  at  least  so  far  as  its  more  thought- 
ful and  cosmopolitan  minds  were  con- 
cerned, convinced  that  the  Allies  were 
fighting  the  battles  of  democracy  and 
that  it  was  our  duty  to  come  to  their 
aid.  This  opinion  was  almost  univer- 
sally held  by  the  class  which  in  France 
would  have  been  denominated  the 
"intellectuals" — that  is  to  say  eminent 
educators,  publicists,  jurists,  authors, 
journalists  and  in  general  the  people 
who  were  best  equipped  to  reach  the 
ear  of  the  public.  But  in  urging,  as 
they  had  urged  since  the  sinking  of 
the  Lusiiania,  that  the  United  States 
should  join  in  the  battle  for  democracy 
and  humanity  they  were  met  by  the 
stubborn  opposition  of  forces  exerting 
great  political  power  not  all  of  which  - 
were  animated  by  unpatriotic  motives. 

It  has  been  saidthattheUnitedStates 
is  a  warlike  but  not  a  military  nation. 
The  significance  of  the  phrase  is  that  our  people 
have  no  eagerness  for  war,  but  once  embroiled 
will  fight  with  the  best.  No  eagerness  was 
shown  for  the  war  which  Germany  forced 
upon  us  in  1917.  Against  it  were  arrayed 
the  great  body  of  peace-loving  people  of  the 
United  States  to  whom  the  thought  of  war 
and  its  attendant  destruction,  brutality  and 
carnage   is    abhorrent.     The   parents   of  the 


325 
educated  now  in  the  atroci- 


land,  only  too  we 
ties  of  modern  warfare  shuddered  at  the 
thought  of  giving  up  their  sons  to  this  en- 
sanguined Moloch.  Peace  lovers  of  every 
grade  and  degree  of  honest  conviction  were 
active  in  opposition  to  it.  To  their  aid,  most 
unhappily,  flocked  eagerly  not  only  hundreds 


^ittij-fifll)  tfoiigrrss  of  tbc  Sliiitc))  §t:Uts  of  ,^mtnca, 

At  the  Hvst  Session, 

l:.j:ijn     iiij   h.l,l   jt    thL-    City   nj   Waihiogton   <m   Mi.i.  t  l         '        ■      > 
oni,  thouwiiJ  nine  hi^ii1ri.i  ah  1   .- 

JOTXT  RESOLTTTION 


to  ImniT  ll« lii'i   '" 


^My^iTl^?^- 


Photographic  riprcKliiction  of  America's  Declaration  of  War  wliich  was 
signed  April  6,  1917 

of  thousands  of  German  Americans  who 
though  cherishing  some  affection  for  the  old 
country  still  at  the  last  put  America  first,  but 
a  reptiie  host  of  more  or  less  secret  and  sinister 
agents  of  the  German  government  who  strove 
in  ways  both  open  and  covert  to  make  the 
nation  false  to  itself  and  to  its  ideals  and  keep 
it  neutral  in  the  face  of  a  life  and  death  strug- 
gle between  savage  autocracy  and  progressive 


326 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


civilization.  So  strong  in  tlieir  total  were 
these  ill-assorted  forces  for  peace  at  any  price 
that  it  is  doubtful  whether  the  war  that  was 
finally  declared  would  ever  have  come  to  pass 
except  for  the  arrogant  defiance  by  Germany 
of  all  American  rights  on  the  high  seas  and 
her  assassination  day  after  day  of  our  citi- 
zens exercising  their  rights  to  travel. 

On  the  31st  of  January,  1917,  Germany 
announced  that  beginning  on  the  following 
day  her  submarines  would  sink  all  ships,  neu- 
tral or  otherwise  entering  a  zone  which  she 
drew  about  Great  Britain,  France,  Italy, 
and  in  the  western  Mediterranean.     This  was 


more  savage  form  of  the  policy  which  Ger- 
many had  maintained  on  the  high  seas  despite 
the  protests  of  this  nation  for  nearly  two  years. 
But  it  was  an  arrogant  threat  and  an  insolent 
defiance.  It  could  have  no  other  result  than 
the  instant  cessation  ot  diplomatic  relations 
of  any  sort  between  the  two  countries.  Fur- 
ther correspondence  was  wholly  out  of  the 
question  when  the  only  result  of  the  long 
continued  series  of  notes  relative  to  the  Liisi- 
tania  affair  was  a  promise  which  Germany 
repudiated  as  soon  as  it  seemed  to  her  inter- 
est to  do  so.  It  was  merely  the  case  of  the 
Belgian  "scrap  of  paper"  over  again.     The 


1  al  of  some  ot  the  coming  ott;. 


ryh,  N.  V. 


a  flat  repudiation  of  the  agreement  made  by 
the  German  government,  in  the  course  of  the 
protracted  diplomatic  correspondence  over 
the  Lusitania  crime,  not  to  sink  liners  without 
due  warning  and  without  placing  their  pas- 
sengers in  a  place  of  safety. 

Indeed  that  agreement  was  hardly  made 
before  it  was  violated,  and  throughout  the 
Lusitania  negotiations  the  attitude  of  the 
German  Admiralty  had  been  one  of  complete 
indiflerence  to  the  repeated  protests  of  the 
United  States.  The  forbearance  of  the  Pres- 
ident in  the  face  of  the  continued  murderous 
attacks  upon  American  ships,  or  British  ships 
carrying  American  citizens  was  so  great  that 
grave  murmunngs   arose   among  the  people 


principle  that  no  treaties  or  agreements  were 
binding  upon  Germany  was  once  more 
given  to  the  world  by  the  Kaiser's  Chancellor. 

Three  days  after  this  insolent  notification 
was  given  out,  the  President  sent  Ambassa- 
dor von  BernstorfF  his  passports.  That 
astute  diplomat  recognized  the  force  of  the 
situation  by  his  cynical  remark  on  getting  the 
news :  "  Well,  the  United  States  could  do  noth- 
ing less." 

Indeed,  it  was  very  soon  discovered  that 
the  United  States  might  have  done  much 
more,  and  certainly  should  have  done  what 
it  did  do  much  earlier.  For  with  the  dis- 
missal of  the  German  Ambassador  publicity 
was  given  by  the  administration  to  some  of 


over  the  policy  of  sending  notes  instead  of  the  plots  against  the  well  being  of  this  coun- 

shells.  try  and  against  its  maintenance  of  strict  neu- 

So  the  new  German  threat  was  in  effect  trality  which  had  been  directed  from  sources 

only  a  formal  statement  of  the  continuance  in  so  close  to  the  embassy  that  the  complicity 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


327 


of  its  officials  was  morally  certain.  There 
were  bomb  plots  for  the  destruction  of  allied 
ships  leaving  our  harbors;  there  were  con- 
spiracies to  blow  up  railroad  tunnels  and 
bridges.  Money  was  spent  with  agents  in 
the  United  States  of  the  Indian  Independence 
Committee  to  foment  a  revolution  against 
British  authority  m  India;  a  regular  office  was 
maintained  for  tiie  procurement  of  fraudulent 
passports  for  German  reservists;  ships  were 
chartered  to  provide  German  warships  at 
sea  with  coal  and  other  supplies  in  violation 
of  the  neutrality  laws  of  the  United  States. 
An  effort  was  made  to  organize  an  expedition  of 


sufficient  to  justify  an  immediate  declaration 
of  war  against  Germany.  With  what  seemed 
to  be  at  the  time  too  much  self  restraint,  the 
President  held  back  a  declaration  of  war  for 
weeks.  He  was  supposed  to  be  waiting  for 
some  overt  act  to  justify  this  grave  and  con- 
clusive action.  But  overt  acts  came  and  went. 
In  one  day  three  American  ships  were  sunk 
and  tifteen  American  citizens  lost.  The  full 
forceofthe  policy  of  frightfulness  was  evidently 
mtended  to  be  applied  to  American  ships  as 
to  all  others.  Germany's  determination  to 
force  a  war  was  only  too  clearly  indicated. 
Congress  was  now  out  of  session,  its  term 


The  largest  ot  Lnclc  Sam's  Army  Aviation  schuols  at  i\orth  Island  near  Sai>  Diego,  Calif. 


German  reservists  to  invade  Canada  and 
destroy  the  Welland  Canal.  But  the  cap- 
stone of  the  German  edifice  of  bad  faith  and 
plotting  against  the  United  States  was  fur- 
nished bv  the  publication  by  the  adminis- 
tration, shortly  after  von  Bernstorff's  dis- 
missal, of  a  dispatch  from  Zimmermann,  Secre- 
tary for  Foreign  Affairs  of  the  German  gov- 
ernment, directing  the  German  ambassador 
to  Mexico  to  offer  Carranza  aid  in  war  upon 
the  United  States  and  promising  him  that 
Texas,  Arizona  and  the  rest  of  the  south- 
western tier  of  states  should  be  assured  to 
Mexico.  It  was  further  directed  in  the  same 
note  that  negotiations  be  opened  with  Japan 
to  win  her  from  the  Allies  and  persuade  her 
to  declare  war  upon  the  United  States. 

A  mere  fraction  of  these  affronts  to  our  na- 
tional integrity  and  dignity  would  have  been 


having  expired  March  fourth  by  limitation. 
The  President  on  March  9th  issued  a  call  for 
it  to  meet  in  extra  session  April  i6th.  That 
call  seemed  to  be  the  signal  for  renewed  Ger- 
man aggressions,  and  on  March  21st  a  new- 
call  was  issued  setting  forward  the  session 
to  April  2nd.  On  that  day  he  appeared  be- 
fore a  joint  session  of  both  houses  asking  that 
Congress  proclaim  a  state  of  war  with  Ger- 
many. In  his  address  he  placed  the  en- 
trance of  the  American  people  into  the  war 
upon  the  high  plane  of  devotion  to  the  cause 
of  democracy  and  stripped  from  it  any  sus- 
picion of  selfish  purpose.  The  phrases  in 
which  he  defined  this  intent  have  passed  into 
history.  Some  paragraphs  of  the  address  ex- 
press the  ideal  of  the  United  States  in  language 
so  elevated  and  dignified  that  they  may  well 
be  quoted  here. 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


The  First  Battalion,  of  the  N.  Y.  Naval  Militia,  who  were  called  to  the  colors 


We  have  no  quarrel  with  the  German  people.  We 
have  no  feeling  toward  them  but  one  of  sympathy  and 
friendship.  It  was  not  upon  their  impulse  that  their 
Government  acted  in  entering  this  war.  It  was  not 
with  their  previous  knowledge  or  approval.  It  was  a 
war  determined  upon  as  wars  used  to  be  determined 
upon  in  the  old,  unhappy  days,  when  peoples  were 
nowhere  consulted  by  their  rulers  and  wars  were  pro- 
voked and  waged  in  the  interest  of  dynasties  or  of  little 
groups  of  ambitious  men  who  were  accustomed  to  use 
their  fellow-men  as  pawns  and  tools. 

Self-governed  nations  do  not  fill  their  neighbor 
States  with  spies  or  set  the  course  of  intrigue  to  bring 
about  some  critical  posture  of  affairs  which  will  give 
them  an  opportunity  to  strike  and  make  conquest. 
Such  designs  can  be  successfully  worked  out  only  under 
cover  and  where  no  one  has  the  right  to  ask  questions. 
Cunningly  contrived  plans  of  deception  or  aggression, 
carried,  it  may  be,  from  generation  to  generation, 
can  be  worked  out  and  kept  from  the  light  only  within 
the  privacy  of  courts  or  behind  the  carefully  guarded 
confidences  of  a  narrow  and  privileged  class.  They  are 
happily  impossible  where  public  opinion  commands 
and  insists  upon  full  information  concerning  all  the 
nations's  affairs. 

A  steadfast  concert  for  peace  can  never  be  main- 
tained except  by  a  partnership  of  democratic  nations. 
No  autocratic  Government  could  be  trusted  to  keep 
faith  within  it  or  observe  its  covenants.  It  must  be  a 
league  of  honor,  a  partnership  of  opinion.  Intrigue 
would  eat  its  vitals  away;  the  plottings  of  inner  circles 
who  could  plan  what  they  would  and  render  account 
to  no  one  would  be  a  corruption  seated  at  its  very 
heart.  Only  free  peoples  can  hold  their  purpose  and 
their  honor  steady  to  a  common  end  and  prefer  the  in- 
terests of  mankind  to  any  narrow  interest  of  their  own. 


The  world  must  be  made  safe  for  democracy.  Its 
peace  must  be  planted  upon  the  tested  foundations  of 
political  liberty.  We  have  no  selfish  ends  to  serve. 
We  desire  no  conquest,  no  dominion.  We  seek  no 
indemnities  for  ourselves,  no  material  compensation 
for  the  sacrifices  we  shall  freely  make.  We  are  but  one 
of  the  champions  of  the  rights  of  mankind.  We  shall 
be  satisfied  when  those  rights  have  been  made  as  secure 
as  the  faith  and  the  freedom  of  nations  can  make  them. 

Just  because  we  fight  without  rancor  and  without 
selfish  object,  seeking  nothing  for  ourselves  but  what 
we  shall  wish  to  share  with  all  free  peoples,  we  shall,  I 
feel  confident,  conduct  our  operations  as  belligerents 
without  passion  and  ourselves  observe  with  proud 
punctilio  the  principles  of  right  and  of  fair  play  we  pro- 
fess to  be  fightmg  for. 

It  is  a  distressing  and  oppressive  duty,  gentlemen  of 
the  Congress,  which  I  have  performed  in  thus  addressing 
you.  There  are,  it  may  be,  many  months  of  fiery  trial 
and  sacrifice  ahead  of  us.  It  is  a  fearful  thing  to  lead 
this  great,  peaceful  people  into  war,  into  the  most  ter- 
rible and  disastrous  of  all  wars,  civilization  itself  seem- 
ing to  be  m  the  balance. 

But  the  right  is  more  precious  than  peace,  and  we 
shall  fight  for  the  things  which  we  have  always  carried 
nearest  our  hearts — for  democracy,  for  the  right  of 
those  who  submit  to  authority  to  have  a  voice  in  their 
own  Governments,  for  the  rights  and  liberties  of  small 
nations,  for  a  universal  dominion  of  right  by  such  a 
concert  of  free  peoples  as  shall  bring  peace  and  safety  to 
all  nations  and  make  the  world  itself  at  last  free. 

To  such  a  task  we  can  dedicate  our  lives  and  our 
fortunes,  everything  that  we  are  and  everything  that 
we  have,  with  the  pride  of  those  who  know  that  the 
day  has  come  when  America  is  privileged  to  spend  her 
blood  and  her  might  for  the  principles  that  gave  her 


THE    NATIONS    AT     WAR 


3-9 


birtli  and  li;ippiness  and  the  peace  which  she  has  treas- 
ured. 

(iod  helplni;  her,  she  can  do  no  other. 

Thereafter  matters  moved  rapidly,  tlioufih 
perhaps  not  rapidly  enough  to  meet  the  de- 
sires of  the  more  enthusiastic  among  the 
American  people.  April  6th  Congress  passed 
the  resolution  declaring  war  in  the  following 
terms: 

Whereas,  The  Imperial  German  Government  has 
committed  repeated  acts  of  war  against  the  Government 
and  the  people  of  the  United  States  of  America;  there- 
fore, be  It 

Resolved,  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives 
of  the  United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled, 
That  the  state  of  war  between  the  I  nited  States  and  the 
Imperial  German  Government,  which  has  thus  been 
thrust  upon  the  United  States,  is  hereby  formally  de- 
clared; and 

That  the  President  be,  and  he  is  hereby,  authorized 
and  directed  to  employ  the  entire  naval  and  military 
forces  of  the  United  States  and  the  resources  of  the 
Government  to  carry  on  war  against  the  Imperial 
German  Government;  and  to  bring  the  conflict  to  a 
successful  termination  all  the  resources  of  the  country 
are  hereby  pledged  by  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States. 

The  same  day  the  President  issued  his 
proclamation  of  war  to  the  American  people. 

Launched  fairly  upon  what  may  yet  prove 
to  be  the  most  gigantic  enterprise  the  United 
States  has  ever  undertaken,  the  matter  for 
immediate   cCi:'^^ideration   was  of  course   the 


raising  of  armies.  Even  before  the  extra 
session  of  Congress  the  President  had  issued 
an  order  increasing  the  enlisted  strength  of 
the  Navy  to  80,000  men,  which  was  later 
extended  to  150,000;  increasing  the  enlisted 
strength  of  the  marine  corps  to  17,400  which 
b\'  later  legislation  was  made  30,000;  mobil- 
izing the  National  Guard;  and  pro\iding  for 
bringing  the  regular  army  up  to  its  full  au- 
thorized war  strength  of  293,000  men. 

Enlistments  except  in  the  Navy  did  not 
proceed  rapidly.  \  olunteers  failed  to  appear 
in  the  desired  numbers.  Many  reasons  con- 
tributed to  this  apparently  disappointing 
result.  The  President  himself  did  not  issue 
an  official  call  upon  the  people  to  volunteer. 
Recruiting  officers  were  merely  authorized 
to  seek  recruits  and  in  innumerable  instances 
the  man  who  wanted  to  volunteer  was  unable 
to  discover  either  the  method  of  so  doing  or 
the  place  to  which  to  repair.  Moreover,  there 
was  uncertainty  as  to  the  terms  ot  enlist- 
ment, and  some  degree  of  perplexity  was 
thrown  about  the  situation  by  the  efforts 
of  Ex-President  Roosevelt  to  raise  an  inde- 
pendent force  of  more  than  200,000  volunteers 
to  constitute  a  special  army  to  be  sent  to 
France  under  his  command  or  at  least  with 
him  in  one  of  the  higher  positions  of  subordin- 
ate command.  The  United  States  has  never 
produced  another  figure  of  quite  the  Roose- 
velt sort.  No  man  has  even  had  so  huge  a 
personal  following,  none  is  so  marvelously 
gifted    with    the    power    to    arouse    popular 


:J.1^Uj 


V''> 


Marshal  Joffre  reviewing  the  West  Point  Cadets.     He  is  seen  saluting  the  colors  as  they  pass  by 


33° 


THE     NATIONS     AT    WAR 


enthusiasm  especially  in  a  warlike  cause. 
Men  flock  to  his  banner,  men  of  the  highest 
professional  standing  in  the  nation  and 
men  from  the 
plains  and  the 
forests.  The 
roster  of  his 
Rough  Riders 
in  the  Cuban 
W  a  r  was  a 
unique  one. 
His  army  for 
France  would 
have  been  an 
even  more  ex- 
traordinary 
c  o  1 1  e  c  t  i  o  n  of 
distinctive  in- 
dividuals had 
It  been  permitted  to  reach  completion. 

But  while  volunteering  languished,  ex- 
cept for  the  Roosevelt  volunteers,  the  Govern- 
ment took  up  the  serious  question  of  raising 
an  initial  army  of  500,000  men  and  being 
prepared  to  increase  it  indefinitely  in  blocks 
of  500,000  at  a  time.  The  question  of  con- 
scription or  reliance  upon  volunteering  came 
up.  It  was  fought  bitterly  but  to  a  suitable 
conclusion  in  Congress  which  after  three 
weeks  of  debate  ordered  the  enrolment  for 
military  service  of  all  male  citizens  within 
the  ages  of  twenty-one  and  thirty  inclusive 
and  the  selective  draft  by  lot  of  such  numbers 
as  were  needed  from  time  to  time.  The  de- 
bate on  the  subject,  which  was  indeed  revolu- 
tionary   for    this    country,    was    acrimonious 


liJable  trio  of  barkers  in  the  torward  turret  on  tli 


and  extended. 
In  the  course 
o  f  it  Col. 
Roosevelt  was 
attacked  for 
in  te  rf  e  ring 
with  the  progress  of 
ordinary  volunteering 
by  his  project  of  a 
private  army.  He 
responded  with  the 
declaration  that  he 
would  accept  no 
volunteers  within  the 
ages  fixed  for  con- 
scripts. In  the  end 
the  bill  was  passed 
with  a  clause  granting 
the  President  author- 
ity to  accept  the  Roosevelt  division  if  offered. 
This  authority  he  promptly  refused  to  exer- 
cise, saying  that  an  expedition  of  that  nature 
would  complicate  the  military  situation. 
Immediately  upon  the  passage  of  the  bill  the 
President  issued  a  proclamation  fixing  June 
5th  as  the  date  of  enrollment.  It  was  at 
that  time  estimated  that  the  troops  selected 
from  the  numbers  thus  enrolled  would  be 
called  to  the  training  camps  bySeptember  ist. 
The  enrolment  of  men  of  military  age  under 
the  conscription  lawwas  held  on  thedate  fixed. 
Under  it  every  male  from  21  to3  i  inclusivewas 
called  upon  to  register  his  name  and  vital 
statistics.  None  were  exempt  save  those  al- 
ready in  the  federal  armed  services.  Even 
convicts  in  prison  and  enemy  aliens  were  com- 


c-iuisMvania 


lilt  entire  Atl.mtie  Meet  of  hity  ships  headed  by  the  Pfnnsyhania 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


U.  S.  Troops  in   IVafalgar  Square,  London,  are  welcomed  by  an  enthusiastic  crowd 


Copyrieht  by  Brown  Bros. 


332 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


pelled  to  put  tluir  names  upon  tlie  lists. 
Questions  of  exemption  were  to  be  settled 
later,  and  as  the  grounds  of  exemption  were 
not  few,  and  the  claims  for  it  many,  it  was 
expected  that  there  would  be  many  compli- 
cations arising. 

Some  apprehension  was  felt  as  to  the  suc- 
cess of  the  enrolment.  From  the  beginning 
of  the  agitation  for  conscription  opposition  to 
it  was  widespread  and  particularly  noisy. 
After  the  passage  of  the  bill  the  noise  con- 
tinued, but  the  later  event  showed  that  the 


was  largely  superficial.  The  youth  of  the 
land  flocked  to  the  polls,  ready  and  eager  to 
enrol.  They  came  in  such  numbers  as  to  over- 
whelm the  registry  officials  who  had  made  no 
preparations  for  such  a  flood.  The  enroling 
places  were  kept  open  hours  after  the  closing 
time  fixed  by  law,  and  even  reopened  the  next 
day.  In  the  end  more  than  10,000,000  names 
were  placed  upon  the  rolls — almost  one  tenth 
of  the  entire  population  of  the  United  States. 
The  day  passed  in  quiet  and  good  order. 
From     the    whole    nation     only    four    cases 


L  -j,  tlic  latest  type  of  undersea  craft  to  be  added  to  our  navy 


actual  opposition  was  not  so  powerful  as  had 
been  thought.  A  little  group  of  radicals, 
socialists,  anarchists,  single  taxers  and  the  like 
whose  names  had  for  years  become  familiar 
to  the  public  as  those  of  malcontents,  and  per- 
petual critics  led  the  crusade.  The  hand  of 
the  German  propaganda  was  plainly  shown, 
and  great  hopes  were  expressed  that  on  regis- 
tration day  the  report  of  the  failure  of  the 
enrolment  might  be  sent  to  Berlin.  Mass 
meetings  of  protest  were  held,  at  which  in- 
cipient riots  broke  out,  and  treasonable  circu- 
lars protesting  against  the  draft  were  widely 
circulated. 

But    when    the    actual    day   of   enrolment 
arrived  it  was  apparent  that  this  opposition 


of  violent  resistance  to  the  enrolment  were 
reported  to  the  authorities  at  Washing- 
ton. 

It  was  at  once  announced  that  the  actual 
draft  would  be  made,  by  drawing  names  from 
wheels  in  each  enroling  station,  in  about  two 
weeks.  One  million  names,  it  was  expected, 
would  be  thus  drawn  and  it  was  estimated 
that  exemptions,  from  one  cause  or  another, 
would  eliminate  about  250,000  of  these.  The 
remainder  would  be  given  a  few  weeks  to 
adjust  their  affairs,  and  then  be  called  to  the 
colors. 

The  final  stage  of  the  creation  of  this  vast 
citizen  army  had  not  been  reached  when  this 
book  was  published.      But  the  earlier  stages 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


333 


sliowcd  a  degree  of  national  enthusiasm  and 
quiet  determination  that  spoke  most  liupe- 
fully  forthecharacterof  the  army  thus  hastily 
improvised. 

In  the  meantime  the  United  States  had 
been  visited  by  distmguished  commissions 
from  its  Allies,  Great  Britain  and  Prance. 
At  the  head  of  the  British  Commission  was 
former  Premier  Balfour.  Leading  the  French 
were  the  present  Minister  of  Justice  and  for- 
mer Premier  Viviani  and  the  Marshal  of 
France,  Joffre,  the  hero  of  the  Marne.     The 


mediately  with  one  division  of  troops — about 
30,000  men.  To  these  were  added  2,600  ma- 
rines, a  regiment  of  engineers  recruited  from 
active  practitioners  of  that  profession  and 
intended  to  direct  the  rebuilding  of  French 
railroads  and  highways,  and  a  large  number 
of  aviators  whose  machines  were  to  be  sup- 
plied by  the  French  and  British — our  fore- 
sight not  having  been  equal  in  the  last  three 
years  to  the  provision  of  even  a  partially  ade- 
quate fleet  of  aircraft. 

Inadequate  as  this  contribution  to  the  al- 


ls: - 


te^-^ 


.     ,.,ii^;a  Lj   Aii.ciricji.  Ti^ 

Lieut.  Bruce  Richardson  who  was  in  charge  of  the  gun  crew  on  the  Mongolia  that  is  reported  to  have  sunk  a  (lernian  submarine 


purpose  of  the  visit  was  to  accomplish  the 
most  complete  unity  of  action  and  of  purpose 
on  the  part  of  the  allied  nations.  It  was 
quickly  made  manifest  to  the  United  States 
that  the  three  great  needs  of  the  Allies  in  the 
order  of  their  importance  were  food,  money 
and  men. 

As  to  the  men,  it  was  but  too  apparent  that 
a  long  time  must  elapse  before  the  army  pro- 
vided for  in  the  selective  draft  law  could 
be  made  fit  for  service.  But  on  the  i8th  of 
May  the  President  made  at  least  a  beginning 
of  what  it  was  expected  would  be  ultimately 
a  prodigious  stream  of  troops  to  France,  by 
ordering  General  Pershing,  one  of  the  ablest 
general  officers  in  the  service,  to  France  im- 


bed forces  seems,  it  was  at  least  a  guarantee 
of  good  faith.  At  the  time  it  was  announced 
the  American  public  was  greatly  heartened 
by  the  discovery  that  for  some  time  a  con- 
siderable fleet  of  our  destroyers  had  been 
operating  against  the  Germans  in  the  sub- 
marine zone.  The  heavy  veil  of  secrecy  which 
the  Navy  Department  censorship  drew  over 
the  operations  of  the  Navy  at  this  period 
makes  it  wholly  impossible  to  say  what 
further  service  our  gallant  men  afloat  were 
then  rendering  to  our  allies. 

The  appeal  of  the  Allies  for  money  was 
met  by  the  appropriation  by  Congress,  with- 
out a  dissenting  vote  in  the  House,  and  with 
but  few  in  the  Senate  of  the  colossal  sum  of 


334 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


$7,000,000,000  for  war  purposes.  To  a 
great  extent  this  is  to  be  lent  to  the  Allies 
and  will  be  employed  entirely  for  meeting 
their  purchases  of  food  and  munitions  in  the 
American  market.  To  supply  funds  for 
immediate  use  by  the  United  States 
i?2,ooo,ooo,ooo  in  3I  per  cent,  bonds  were 
offered  in  May  to  the  people  of  the  United 
States  as  a  Liberty  Loan  which  seemed  cer- 
tain of  being  largely  oversubscribed. 

To  meet  the  need  of  the  Allies  for  food,  a 
need  which  serious  enough  in  the  sprmg  of 
1917  threatened  to  become  a  matter  of  life 
and  death  by  the  succeeding  winter,  it  was 
necessary  to  break  down  the  submarine  block- 
ade of  the  British  Isles.  To  accomplish  this 
end  the  United  States  determined  to  build 
an  immense  fleet  of  3,000  ton  cargo  ships  of 
wood  or  steel  or  any  other  material  which 
could  quickest  be  obtained,  and  send  them  in 
a  constant  procession  through  the  submarine 
zone.  The  ships  were  to  be  armed,  and  it 
was  argued  that  together  with  other  ships 
from  British,  and  perhaps  Japanese  yards,  a 
fleet  of  more  than  1,500  could  readily  be 
maintained.  Operated  scientifically  this 
would  give  to  every  eight  miles  east  and  west 
of  the  Atlantic  passage  four  ships  all  the 
time,  two  going  and  two  coming.  The  sub- 
marine that  should  lift  its  head  in  search  of 
its  prey  would  be  subject  to  a  sudden  con- 
centrated fire.  Its  attack  would  be  signalled 
from  ship  to  ship,  and  either  by  fight  or  flight 
they  would  meet  and  defeat  its  purpose. 
Added  to  this  was  the  increase  of  the  British 
submarine  patrol  by  the  ships  of  the  United 


IMiMiu  ;>>    KascI  A-  Herbert 

Uncle  Sam's  Army  Bakin);  Corps  take  very  f;ood  care  of  tl'.e 
boys  at  the  front 

States  Navy  and  of  the  Japanese  Navy  now 
for  the  first  time  employed  in  European 
waters.  It  seemed  then  that  there  could  be 
no  possibility  of  the  submarines  continuing 
to  so  block  our  carriage  of  food  to  England 
as  to  accomplish  the  German  design  of  starv- 
ing that  nation  into  subjection. 

It  was  evident  from  the  first  that  the 
United  States  government  did  not  propose  to 
underestimate  the  length  or  the  severity  of 
the  war^upon  which  it  had  embarked.  Though 
many  of  the  people  took  it  lightly,  believing 
that  Germany  was  in  such  desperate  straits 
that  the  war  might  be  over  before  the  newly 


I  ..[.vrti^lit  t.\    Hr.-Mi    llr.s. 

London's  welcome  to  U.  S.  Troops.      Tlie  Klnn,  Queen  Alexandra,  and  Lord  Frenrli  watch  the  march  at  liiicklnKham   I'alace 


THE     NATIONS     AT     WAR 


335 


Copj  right  hy  News  Photo  Service 

General  St-  Joseph  Jacques  JofFre  who  commanded  the  French  Armies  for  the  first  seventeen  months  of  the  war,  was  then  retired 

Marshal  of  France.      He  is  the  idol  of  France 


336 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


General  Joffre,  Secretary  Lansing,  and  Rene  Viviani  leaving  t|- 

Washington 

recruited  American  trpops  could  reach  the 
other  side,  the  government  gave  no  counte- 
nance to  this  opinion.  Indeed,  an  inchnation 
was  apparent  to  exaggei;ate  the  strength  of 
Germany  and  to  overestimate  the  weakness 
of  our  aUies.  It  was  hinted  that  if  the  war 
were  to  be  over  before  our  troops  could  be 
put  in  the  field,  it  would  be  by  the  starvation 
of  Great  Britain  and.  not  by  the  defeat  of 
Germany.  Discussion  was  at  once  begun  in 
Congress  and  administration  circles  about  the 
conservation  of  our  foodstuffs  in  order  that 
we  might  have  plenty  with  which  to  supply 


Muv/ivx 


R^9K:. 

^^^■O  V.'  J  ^ 

:_i##m 

jg^iMB 

- — -.  — i^w^^r^^w^ 

1'^ 

1*1 

' .\-'  '^W^ 

iMjatO^.^mM 

'  ^v~^..^ mm:^*' ^  - 

\^^m-                             ^""9^ 

m     r'^ 

General  Joffre  unveils  monument  of  The  Marquis  De  Lafayette.  I  h< 
Marshal  of  France  played  the  leading  role  in  this  event.  During  the  proceed- 
ings a  little  girl  presented  the  Marshal  with  a  huge  bouquet  and  the  Marsha 
turned  to  reward  her  with  a  kiss 


England  during  the  crucial  period 
that  must  elapse  before  a  new 
crop  would  become  avadabie  in 
that  country. 

Already  the  United  States  was 
largely  stripped  of  foodstuffs  be- 
cause of  the  heavy  exports  to 
the  belligerent  nations.  Although 
we  had  not  been  at  war,  our 
people  suffered  one  of  the  chief 
inconveniences  of  war  in  the  enor- 
mously increased  prices  of  the 
necessities  of  life  due  to  heavy 
foreign  buying  in  our  markets. 
Tlie  cost  of  living  was  admitted 
on  all  sides  to  have  gone  up  more 
than  25  per  cent.  At  this  moment 
an  added  misfortune  came  upon 
the  country  in  the  partial  failure 
of  the  winter  crop  of  wheat — a 
shortageestimated  at  the  moment  of  writingat 
fully  one-third.  This  resulted  in  tremendous 
agitation  for  the  extension  of  the  area  em- 
ployed in  raising  foodstuffs,  and  for  the  par- 
ticipation in  that  work  of  all  men  who  had  a 
garden  or  a  bit  of  land  available  as  well  as 
the  professional  farmers.  Every  possible 
agency  was  employed  to  awaken  interest  in 
this  undertaking.  The  railroads  appealed 
for  more  active  farming  through  printed 
matter  distributed  along  their  lines  and  by 
the  personal  efforts  of  their  agents  strove  to 
awaken  the  interest  and  cooperation  of  their 
customers,  even  in  some  cases 
supplying  the  necessary  seed. 
States,  counties  and  public-spirited 
organizations  furnished  seed  and 
fertilizer  to  farmers.  The  effects 
of  the  campaign  were  apparent  by 
the  reports  in  the  spring  of  largely 
increased  acreage  both  of  profes- 
sional and  amateur  farms.  Vil- 
lage lots  and  city  back  yards 
became  potato  patches.  Golf 
links  on  each  side  of  the  fairway 
were  seeded  down  with  beets  and 
onions.  Railroad  rights  of  way 
on  either  side  of  the  track  were 
in  many  mstances  loaned  to  ama- 
teur cultivators.  Farming  be- 
came a  fad  and  the  promise  in  the 
spring  for  unusually  heavy  crops 
in  midsummer  was  great. 

But  here  appeared  the  dif- 
ficulty which  always  embarrasses 
the    farmer    in    time    of    peace, 


tiif:   nations   at   war 


337 


Bririsli  W.ii  L'uiiiriii^Mon  ar    \\  ashini;ri)n.     i  io.Kiiabit-  Arthur  J.  iiaitoiir,  Bntisii  I'drciKii  .Miniitcr  and  hcail  of  tin 

Commission  is  seated  seventh  from  the  left  of  picture 


British 


and  which  in  time  of  war  promised  to 
be  doubly  perplexing.  Crops  ready  for  har- 
vesting must  be  garnered  swiftly.  Four  or 
five  men  can  put  in  a  crop  which  it  will  take 
three  or  four  times  as  many  to  harvest. 
Every  year  at  harvest  time  the  wail  of  the 
farmer  over  the  scarcity  of  harvest  hands 
is  heard  over  the  land.  This  year  the  appre- 
hension was  doubled.  The  nation  was  to 
call  to  arms  perhaps  a  million  men.  The  am- 
munition factories  were  employing  as  many 
more.  The  farmer  saw  his  usual  difficultv  in 
getting  hands  at  harvest  time  enormously  in- 
creased. "Why,"  he  asked,  "should  I  put 
in  crops  of  double  size  when  I  have  no  cer- 
tainty of  being  able  to  get  the  men  to  gather 
them  when  ripe.'" 

The  President  had  emphasized  in  his  war 
proclamation  this  need  of  added  production 
of  food  stuffs  in  these  stirring  words: 

It  is  evident  to  evei^-  thinking  man  that  our  indus- 
tries, on  the  farms,  m  the  shipyards,  m  the  mines,  in  the 
factories,  must  be  made  more  prohfic  and  more  efficient 
than  ever,  and  that  they  must  be  more  economically 
managed  and  better  adapted  to  the  particuhir  require- 
ments of  our  task  than  they  have  been;  and  what  I  want 
to  say  is  that  the  men  and  the  women  who  devote  their 
thought  and  their  energy  to  these  things  will  be  serving 
the  country  and  conducting  the  fight  for  peace  and 
freedom  just  as  truly  and  just  as  effectively  as  the 
men  on  the  battlefield  or  in  the  trenches.  The  industrial 
forces  of  the  country,  men  and  women  alike,  will  be 
a  great  national,  a  great  international  service  army — a 
notable  and  honored  host  engaged  in  the  service  of  the 
nation  and  the  world,  the  efficient  friends  and  saviors 
of  free  men  everii^vhere.  Thousands,  nay,  hundreds 
of  thousands,  of  men  otherwise  liable  to  military  service 
will  of  right  and  of  necessity  be  excused  from  that  ser- 


vice and  assigned  to  the  fundamental,  sustaining 
work  of  the  fields  and  factories  and  mines,  and  they 
will  be  as  much  part  of  the  great  patriotic  forces  of 
the  nation  as  the  men  under  fire. 

I  take  the  liberty,  therefore,  of  addressing  this  word 
to  the  farmers  of  the  country  and  to  all  who  work  on 
the  farms:  The  supreme  need  of  our  own  nation  and  of 
the  nations  with  which  we  are  cooperating  is  an  abun- 
dance of  supplies,  and  especially  of  foodstuffs.  The 
importance  of  an  adequate  food  supply,  especially  for 
the  present  year,  is  superlative.  Without  abundant 
food,  alike  for  the  armies  and  the  peoples  now  at  war, 
the  whole  great  enterprise  upon  which  we  have  em- 
barked will  break  down  and  fail.  The  world's  food  re- 
serves are  low.  Not  only  during  the  present  emergency, 
but  for  some  time  after  peace  shall  have  come,  both 
our  own  people  and  a  large  proportion  of  the  people  of 
Europe  must  rely  upon  the  harvests  in  America. 

Upon  the  farmers  of  this  country,  therefore,  in  large 
measure'rests  the  fate  of  the  war  and  the  fate  of  the 
nations.  May  the  nation  not  count  upon  them  to  omit 
no  step  that  will  increase  the  production  of  their  land 
or  that  will  bring  about  the  most  effectual  cooperation 
in  the  sale  and  distribution  of  their  products?  The 
time  is  short.  It  is  of  the  most  imperative  importance 
that  everything  possible  be  done,  and  done  immedi- 
ately, to  make  sure  of  large  harvests.  I  call  upon 
young  men  and  old  alike  and  upon  the  able-bodied 
boys  of  the  land  to  accept  and  act  upon  this  dut)- — 
to  turn  in  hosts  to  the  farms  and  make  certain  that 
no  pains  and  no  labor  is  lacking  in  this  great 
matter. 

Not  content,  however,  with  this  call  upon 
the  youth  of  the  land  to  give  themselves 
freely  to  the  duties  of  the  harvest,  he  made 
it  clear  in  his  proclamation  announcing  the 
enforcement  of  the  conscription  law  that 
conscripts  would  be  liable  for  duty  in  the 
grain  field  as  well  as  on  the  field  of  battle. 


33» 


THE    NATIONS    AT    WAR 


How  far  thi"-  provision  may  have  met  the 
need  of  the  farming  community  cannot  be 
chronicled  here  as  it  was  not  to  be  put  to 
the  test  until  some  months  later  than  the 
publication  of  thif  volume.  » It  established, 
however,  a  new  precedent  in  the  war  time 
power  of  the  state — and  a  sensible  precedent. 
If  the  government  can  conscript  men  to  go 
out  to  kill  our  enemies,  it  has  surely  the  power 
to  conscript  them  to  aid  in  feeding  our  friends. 
If  it  is  the  part  of  national  defense  to  keep 
the  ranks  of  the  army  full,  it  is  quite  as  essen- 
tial to  keep  those  ranks 
fed.  The  President's 
utterances  attached  to 
the  conscription 
proclamation  were  so 
clear  and  convincing, 
and  laid  down  in  such 
an  effective  form  a  new 
theorv  in  government, 
that  they  will  be  quoted 
here: 

The  nation  needs  all  men, 
but  it  needs  each  man,  not  in 
the  field  that  will  most 
pleasure  him  but  in  the  en- 
deavor that  will  best  serve 
tha  common  good.  Thus, 
though  a  shaqishooter  pleases 
to  operate  a  triphammer  for 
the  forging  of  great  guns, 
and  an  expert  machinist 
desires  to  march  with  the 
flag,  the  nation  is  being 
served  only  when  tiie 
sharpshooter  marches  and 
the  machinist  remains  at  his 
levers. 

The  whole  nation  must  be 
a  team  \n  which  each   man 

shall  plav  the  part  for  which  he  is  best  fitted,  lo  this 
end  Congress  has  provided  that  the  nation  shall  be 
organized  for  war  by  selection  and  that  each  man  shall 
be  classified  for  service  in  the  place  to  which  it  shall 
best  serve  the  general  good  to  call  hmi. 

So,  swiftly  equipping  itself  with  armed  men 
for  its  own  defense  and  for  the  succor  of  its 
allies,  preparing  to  extend  to  those  who  fought 
with  it  all  the  aid  that  its  unparalleled  ex- 
panse of  farmuig  lands  and  grazmg  fields 
could  afford,  ecjuipped  to  break  down^  the 
submarine  menace  by  the  sheer  force  of  the 


General  Pershin;;.  centre.  L'umiiiander  of  American 
Forces  in  France,     (ieneral  Pclletier,  lelt. 


weight   and   numbers  of  vessels  that  it  put 
afloat,  the  United  States  in  the  spring  of  1917 
entered  upon  the  war  which  should  make  the 
world  safe  for  democracy.     It  entered  after 
long  hesitation,  but  with  no  lingering  shadow 
of  doubt.     It  threw  down  the  gauntlet  with- 
out   bravado,    but    with    determination.     It 
measured  with  serious  thought  the  size  of  its 
undertaking  and  with  its  first  official  action 
adjusted  its  preparations  to  the  most  extreme 
needs  that  might  arise.     Within  three  weeks 
of  the  declaration  of  war  the  destroyers  flying 
the    stars    and    stripes 
were  pursuing  German 
submarines   in  the  Bay 
o'f    Biscay    and    thje 
North    Sea.      Within    a 
month    the    first    expe- 
dition,   made    up    of 
United  States  regulars, 
than    whom   no    better 
troops  ever  followed  flag 
or  marched  to  the  notes 
of    the    bugle,    were 
ordered  to  France.     Be- 
fore   they    arrived    the 
first    American     troops 
were   landed  in   France 
— a      regiment      o  t 
engineers  enlisted  not  to 
fight  but   to  build;  not 
to  destroy  but  to  repair 
the  destruction  of  war. 
How   great    that    army 
thus  initiated  shall  yet 
become,  how  many  hun- 
dreds  of  thousands    or 
millions,     perhaps,      of 
young  Americans  must 
go    to    the    shell-pitted 
and    trench-scarred    lands    of    France     and 
Belgium  one  cannot  at  this  moment  estimate. 
Enough  to  say  that  the  great  republic  has  put 
its  hand  to  the  plow  and  will  not  turn  back. 
Not  until  with  our  allies  we  have  made  the 
defeat    of   Germany    complete    and    exacted 
restitution  for  the  atrocious  wrongs  she  has 
heaped  upon  the  lands  which  were  the  vic- 
tims   of   her    piratical   raid  will   the   United 
States  sheath  again  the  sword  which  she  so 
unwillingly,    but    with    grim    determination 
at  last  drew  from  its  scabbard. 


THE    END 


■, 


ll   lli   II  ill  III  II II  Mil  I   ill 

D     000  029  581     6 


V, 


\ 


"\. 


